San Francisco received some deflating news heading into the Week 11 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars as Elijah Mitchell was downgraded to doubtful heading into the weekend.
Mitchell suffered a fractured finger in the second quarter of the 49ers Monday night win over the Los Angeles Rams and required a minor surgery the following day. Since, the running back has yet to return to practice, putting his availability for Sunday in jeopardy.
"He had the type of break where they thought he could function. But surgery might have been different than we anticipated," general manager John Lynch said on KNBR. "Pain tolerance is not an issue, but he has to be able to function. We will take it till game time."
If Mitchell is unable to go, the 49ers will look to Jeff Wilson Jr., who played his first snaps in Week 10 after opening the season on the Physically Unable to Perform list with a meniscus tear. Rookie running back Trey Sermon, who has slipped down the depth chart and only appeared in four games for San Francisco this season, is another option the 49ers could look to on Sunday.
"Whatever we give him, he'll be ready," Kyle Shanahan said of Sermon. "He's been ready every week. If Elijah's not up, that does give him the opportunity."
Fellow running back JaMycal Hasty will miss his second-straight game with a knee injury.
The 49ers have until Saturday at 1 p.m. PT to make a designation for safety Jaquiski Tartt (knee) and linebacker Dre Greenlaw (groin), whose practice windows were opened this week. Should they both be activated this weekend, the 49ers will have some tough decisions on returning the veterans to starting roles following the play of rookie safety Talanoa Hufanga and linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair.
As for the Jaguars, running back James Robinson has been ruled questionable heading into the weekend. Robinson, one of Jacksonville's key offensive playmakers landed on the injury report with a heel/knee injury, however, returned to practice in a limited capacity this week.
Here's a look at the full injury report heading into Sunday:
49ers
Out
- RB JaMycal Hasty (ankle)
- DL Maurice Hurst (calf)
Doubtful
- RB Elijah Mitchell (rib, finger)
Jaguars
Out
- LB Dakota Allen (shoulder)
Questionable
- RB James Robinson (heel, knee)
