SANTA CLARA — The 49ers have lost 10 of the last 13 games George Kittle missed since November 2020. They’ll try to buck that trend today.
While Kittle’s hamstring injury scratched him from the 49ers’ lineup against the visiting Seattle Seahawks, the 49ers will have two other mainstays who were questionable with injuries: left tackle Trent Williams and defensive end Nick Bosa.
Kittle, who caught his team-leading seventh touchdown pass in last Sunday’s win at Tampa Bay, showed up on the injury list Wednesday with a hamstring injury that kept him out of that day’s practice; he was limited Thursday and Friday.
The 49ers (5-4) have won six straight against the Seahawks (4-5), and Kittle has been a difference-maker along the way. He has seven touchdowns in his last five meetings with Seattle, including two scores on five catches in last month’s 36-24 road win.
Before dawn Sunday, Kittle was deemed “unlikely” to play by ESPN’s Adam Schefter and it would otherwise take an “uphill battle,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported.
A hamstring injury resulted in Kittle’s only other missed game this season, a Week 3 loss at the Los Angeles Rams. The 49ers are 7-11 without him since 2017.
The 49ers have lost their last three when Williams has not played — in 2022 at Atlanta, and last season against Minnesota and Cincinnati. He did not practice this past week and was visibly hobbled by an ankle injury, though he was not seen wearing an orthopedic boot.
Bosa battled through a hip injury last Sunday against Tampa Bay and rested rather than practice this past Wednsday and Thursday. He has played every game since his 2021 ACL comeback, with the exception of an October 2022 loss at Atlanta.
Today’s inactive list:
QB Joshua DobbsCB Charvarius WardTE George KittleDL Kevin GivensOL Ben BartchDL Khalil DavisWR Ronnie Bell
OTHER ROSTER MOVES
Punter Pat O’Donnell will make his 49ers debut today in place of sixth-year veteran Mitch Wishnowsky, who went on injured reserve Saturday with a back issue that’s plagued him since training camp. O’Donnell is a nine-year veteran who played eight years with the Chicago Bears and last punted for the 2022 Green Bay Packers.
Adding to the 49ers’ defensive depth is the return of lineman Yetur Gross-Matos from a six-game hiatus (knee), as well as the practice-squad elevations of safety Tashaun Gipson Sr. and recently signed cornerback Nick McCloud.
Gipson, a 49ers’ starting safety the previous two seasons, played strictly on special teams (11 snaps) last Sunday in his return to the club while starters Ji’Ayir Brown and Malik Mustapha played all 61 defensive snaps.
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SEAHAWKS’ MOVES
The Seahawks are coming off an eventual week in which leading tackler Tyrel Dodson got released and center Connor Williams retired. Saturday, they poached their practice squad to sign wide receiver Cody White and tight end Tyler Mabry to the active roster, and to elevate safety Ty Okada and linebacker Patrick O’Connell.