The San Francisco 49ers were already thin at a few offensive skill positions, particularly running back and wide receiver, which makes the news the team got on Wednesday an even tougher pill to swallow.
San Francisco has already put three players on season-ending injured reserve — running backs Ameer Abdullah and Patrick Taylor Jr. plus wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown — and it’s had several other offensive players sidelined for parts of training camp including RB Jordan James and WRs Brandon Aiyuk, Jacob Cowing, Jauan Jennings, and Jordan Watkins.
And now, just three days before their preseason finale against the Los Angeles Chargers and two-and-a-half weeks before their Week 1 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks, the 49ers lost another key offensive player, this time to a suspension.
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Head coach Kyle Shanahan revealed during a radio interview with KNBR that veteran wide receiver Demarcus Robinson had been hit with a three-game suspension for violating the NFL‘s substance abuse policy, which will sideline the 30-year-old wideout for two divisional games against the Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals in Weeks 1 and 3, and a Week 2 matchup against the New Orleans Saints.
“You can always appeal it so we’ll hope for the best on that, but (three weeks) is what we’re planning for,” Shanahan told KNBR.
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Robinson signed a two-year, $9.5 million contract with the 49ers back in March after a two-year stint with the NFC West rival Los Angeles Rams. In his eight-year NFL career, which also included stops with the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens, Robinson has averaged 31 catches, 376 yards, and three touchdowns per season.
Robinson’s suspension is a gut-punch to the 49ers offense that has was already in rough shape to begin with.
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Shanahan told reporters not long ago that Aiyuk likely wouldn’t return until Week 6 as he recovers from a torn ACL and MCL, and Jennings, who is San Francisco’s No. 2 WR and fill0in No. 1 with Aiyuk out, has been dealing with a calf injury in camp.
Cowing, who was expected to see a bigger role in 2025, also missed practice on Wednesday with a hamstring injury, meaning the 49ers will likely begin the regular season with a patchwork wide receiver room that includes 2024 first-round pick Ricky Pearsall, journeymen Russell Gage, Isaiah Hodgins, and Robbie Chosen, and unproven youngsters like Malik Knowles and Terique Owens.
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