Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker III Out For Sunday
The Seahawks have a big divisional matchup this week with only a one-game lead in the division and only a two-game lead on the last-place team in the division. Looking to sweep the Cardinals and establish a tiebreaker over them, Seattle will be heading into the game without leading rusher Kenneth Walker, who is set to miss the contest with ankle and calf issues. 
Despite missing two games early on in the season, Walker is the team’s leading rusher with 542 yards and seven touchdowns. He also leads the running backs room with 38 receptions and 271 yards through the air. He was questionable just yesterday, but the team opted to officially rule him out today.
Luckily, Seattle has an effective backup in Zach Charbonnet was extremely effective in relief-duty when Walker was out earlier this year. In those two contests, Charbonnet had 129 rushing yards and three touchdowns. On the year, he’s second in the running backs room with 266 rushing yards and five touchdowns, adding 29 catches for 204 yards and a touchdown receiving, as well.
With Walker out, Charbonnet is likely to serve as the lead back for the team’s trip to Arizona. Second-year back Kenny McIntosh will back up Charbonnet and George Holani has been called up from the practice squad as a standard gameday elevation. It’s likely precautionary, but with Charbonnet also on the injury report, the depth could be crucial.
The other practice squad elevation for the week will be punter Ty Zentner. Zentner appeared in a game earlier this season for the Rams. This is likely a precaution, as well, as regular punter Michael Dickson is listed as questionable with a back injury.
49ers Activate S Talanoa Hufanga
The 49ers have been bombarded with injuries this year, but today they’ll get a bit of relief. San Francisco has officially made the move to activate safety Talanoa Hufanga from injured reserve. After attempting to make a comeback earlier this year, the hope is that, this time, Hufanga will be healthy enough and here to stay. 
Hufanga’s initial return was from a torn ACL that he suffered just over a year ago. The team activated him from the active/PUP list just prior to the start of the regular season to ensure that he wouldn’t miss the first four games of the year. A limited runup to the season meant a limited snap share when he finally did return to the lineup, though, and after missing the first two games of the season, Hufanga made his official return in Week 3.
Hufanga missed a game after his 2024 debut before getting his second start, but he left that second game early and did not return. In the process of his comeback, Hufanga had suffered ligament damage in his wrist, necessitating an unfortunate return to IR. There was seemingly no guarantee that he would return this season, but the team ended up opening his practice window earlier this week. Hufanga, who is in a contract year, will not be 100 percent in his return as he still needs support for his injured wrist. With a potential free agency run coming, though, Hufanga will attempt to give it a go.
In order to make room on the 53-man roster for Hufanga, the Niners officially made the move to place running back Jordan Mason on IR. Joining Mason on IR will be backup safety George Odum, who has missed the past week of practice dealing with a knee issue that will seemingly end his season.
With an additional roster spot being made available, San Francisco will sign practice squad offensive tackle Sebastian Gutierrez to the active roster. Signed to the practice squad last week after some time in Indianapolis, Gutierrez was elevated for last weekend’s contest but hasn’t appeared in a game since 2022.
Joining Gutierrez for gameday from the practice squad will be linebacker Jalen Graham and running back Ke’Shawn Vaughn. As standard practice squad elevations, Graham and Vaughn will revert to the practice squad after the game, while Gutierrez will remain on the 53-man roster.
Chiefs Place WR Mecole Hardman On IR
Veteran wide receiver Mecole Hardman continues to struggle to live up to his second-round draft status with the Chiefs. His sixth NFL season appears to be coming to an early end as Kansas City places him on injured reserve with a knee issue that surfaced this week. 
Since making the Pro Bowl and earning second-team All-Pro honors as a return man his rookie year, Hardman’s role in the NFL has continued to evolve. While he maintained his role in the return game, his targets as a receiver increased over the years immediately following his rookie season. While his yardage increased, he never matched the six touchdowns he caught in his first year. In the last year of his rookie deal, Hardman’s role seemed to be on a similar pace until an injury saw him miss the final nine games of the season.
As a free agent, Hardman signed a deal to join the Jets, but his turbulent five games in New York only amounted to three targets and one catch for six yards. He was traded back to the Chiefs, despite their lack of plans to re-sign him in the prior offseason, and spent the rest of the season as a minor piece of the offense, missing a five-game stretch with injury. This year, Hardman’s role on the offense is virtually nonexistent as he currently ranks 10th on the team in targets, but he has served as the Chiefs’ primary punt returner while splitting kickoff return duties with Carson Steele and Samaje Perine.
With Steele and Perine able to handle kick return responsibilities in Hardman’s absence, the focus will be on filling his role as a punt returner. Hardman is the only player on the team to return a punt this year, but practice squad wide receiver Montrell Washington got some experience in the role last year.
It looks like the Chiefs will favor a different option, though, as they moved to sign second-year undrafted receiver Nikko Remigio to the active roster from the practice squad. As a graduate transfer at Frenso State after four years with Cal, Remigio broke out with the Bulldogs recording 852 receiving yards and six touchdowns on 74 catches. Perhaps more importantly, Remigio led the Mountain West conference with 259 yards and two touchdowns on 13 punt returns. He looks to have earned an opportunity to field punts in his NFL debut with Hardman out.
Joining Remigio off the practice squad tomorrow will be linebacker Swayze Bozeman and tight end Baylor Cupp. Their promotions are simply standard gameday practice squad elevations, so while Remigio will remain on the 53-man roster following the game, Bozeman and Cupp will revert to the practice squad.
Browns Place OL Jedrick Wills On IR
Jedrick Wills‘ disappointing 2024 campaign has likely come to an end. The Browns announced today that they’ve placed the former starting lineman on injured reserve.
[RELATED: Browns To Demote LT Jedrick Wills]
After dealing with a nagging knee injury to start the season, Wills suffered a hyperextended knee in Week 7 that’s sidelined him for four of the past five weeks. While the lineman has been a mainstay on the injury report over that span, it sounds like he wouldn’t have seen the field even if he was healthy.
With Dawand Jones running with the LT gig, Kevin Stefanski revealed that Wills would serve as a backup when he was healthy enough for the 53-man roster. The former first-round pick’s knee injury made sure the backup plan never came to true fruition, but it was already clear that Wills was out of Cleveland’s plans for the 2024 campaign.
Wills has been the Browns’ full-time LT since joining the organization in 2020. He stayed relatively healthy through his first three seasons in the NFL, but he’s struggled to stay on the field in 2023 and 2024. An MCL injury limited him to only eight contests last year, and he’ll likely end his 2024 campaign with only five appearances. This is especially poor timing for the lineman, as Wills is set to hit free agency after this season.
The Browns weren’t done making moves today. The team announced that defensive tackle Maurice Hurst has also landed on IR. Hurst suffered injuries to both his ankle and foot on Monday night, and the issues will likely sideline him for the rest of the campaign. Both Wills and Hurst will be eligible to return for the regular season finale, but there’s a good chance the team opts to play younger players vs. forcing a veteran back from injury.
In corresponding moves, the Browns signed wideouts Kadarius Toney and Michael Woods from the practice squad to the active roster. Defensive tackle T.Y. McGill and receiver James Proche earned standard promotions from the practice squad.
Eagles Place TE Dallas Goedert On IR
Dallas Goedert‘s knee injury will sideline him for at least the rest of the month. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that the Eagles are placing Goedert on injured reserve.
The veteran tight end will first be eligible to return for Philly’s regular season finale. Rapoport notes that the organization is hoping this break will have Goedert “full speed” for the postseason. While Week 18 would serve as a low-risk return, the Eagles could just wait to activate the tight end during the playoffs.
Goedert suffered his knee injury during last Sunday’s win over the Ravens. The 29-year-old still finished the contest having hauled in three catches for 35 yards and a score while appearing in 40 snaps.
The former second-round pick has been limited to only nine games this season thanks to a previous hamstring issue that sidelined him for three games (and most of a fourth). When he’s been on the field, he’s been plenty productive, hauling in 38 catches for 441 yards. His 49-yards-per-game mark represents the third-highest average of his career, and that includes his no-show in Week 6.
Grant Calcaterra saw the bulk of the snaps at tight end when Goedert was sidelined earlier this season. The third-year player was productive atop the depth chart, hauling in eight catches for 88 yards between Week 8 and Week 9. During that span, Jack Stoll served as the team’s TE2, but the journeyman has since caught on with the Dolphins. C.J. Uzomah was recently brought in for some spot fullback snaps, but the former Bengal could easily soak up some snaps at his natural position.
Fortunately for the Eagles, the offense should continue to hum with their starting TE out of the lineup. DeVonta Smith‘s return from a hamstring injury will certainly help, but Philly should continue to cruise as long as Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, and A.J. Brown lead their respective depth charts.
Extension Candidate: Brock Purdy
Barely a month remains before the 49ers can begin extension talks with Brock Purdy, the Mr. Irrelevant find that helped bail the franchise out of the predicament the Trey Lance miss created. Purdy has lost two of his top four weapons, and he has picked up a shoulder injury. Though, San Francisco’s third-year starter has still accounted himself fairly well in this de facto platform year.
Purdy’s seventh-round contract runs through 2025, and the 49ers have the leverage of a potential 2026 franchise tag at their disposal. But the expectation has been for Purdy extension talks to begin soon. Where those go will be one of the 2025 offseason’s central storylines, as the 49ers — after Deebo Samuel‘s 2022 trade request, Nick Bosa‘s 2023 holdout and Brandon Aiyuk‘s rumor-flooded hold-in — are set to have another offseason dominated by a big-ticket contract.
The question that will define the 49ers’ offseason, as well as the organization’s longer-term outlook, centers around where these negotiations will end up. Dak Prescott used extraordinary leverage to drive the quarterback market to $60MM per year, representing a staggering increase based on where the NFL was just five years prior. It took 25 years for the QB market to balloon from $5MM AAV to $25MM AAV; it has since taken just six for it to climb from $30-$60MM per year. At some point, a team will pass on a monster QB payment. The 2024 offseason did not feature any such actions.
Despite neither Trevor Lawrence nor Jordan Love having established themselves as top-tier quarterbacks, each matched Joe Burrow‘s then-record $55MM AAV. Tua Tagovailoa‘s injury history and inconsistent first two seasons made him a curious extension candidate. Despite rumblings of the Dolphins being leery of paying the going rate, they ultimately did, authorizing a $53.1MM-per-year payday for their southpaw starter. It no longer requires sufficient credentials to earn a top-market QB contract. The leverage the position’s importance creates — amid the fear of starting over — drives these negotiations, putting Purdy in strong position.
Purdy, 25 this month, needed to beat out Nate Sudfeld for the 49ers’ third-string job during his first training camp. Lance’s subsequent ankle injury bumped him to the QB2 role, and San Francisco’s offense — to the surprise of most — did not slow down after Jimmy Garoppolo‘s foot fracture. Purdy proved competent and piloted the team to the 2022 NFC championship game. He then made it back by Week 1 after UCL rehab, during an offseason that ended with the 49ers admitting defeat on Lance, whom they traded to the Cowboys for a fourth-round pick.
Purdy took significant steps last season, throwing 31 touchdown passes in 16 games and becoming the first passer to start a full season and average 9.6 yards per attempt since the 1950s. He led the NFL in QBR and passer rating. The 49ers’ four-All-Pro skill-position cadre provided a considerable boost for the formerly unappealing prospect, but Purdy finished last season by going toe-to-toe with Patrick Mahomes in Super Bowl LVIII. He has been at the wheel longer than Love and has offered more stability than Lawrence. That $55MM-per-year price, then, makes sense as a clear floor.
Of course, persistent Purdy skepticism has come from his place in Kyle Shanahan‘s scheme and whether he would be worth such a contract. After all, the team did find Purdy in Round 7. Wouldn’t it be within the realm of possibility for the franchise to consider cashing out via trade (at some point) and believing it could maximize another passer lacking elite skills? Then again, that is a dangerous game to play.
The 49ers being the team to strongly consider passing on authorizing such a contract should not be ruled out, seeing as Shanahan reached a Super Bowl with Garoppolo at the helm. The 49ers would also see their roster blueprint change wildly if/once they pay Purdy. How the team proceeds with its host of contract-year starters in 2025 — a group including Charvarius Ward, Dre Greenlaw, Talanoa Hufanga and Aaron Banks — may be an early tell on how it will proceed with Purdy, as paying the QB — even in the expected event of a backloaded structure that kept cap hits low early — would naturally lead to cost-cutting moves elsewhere on the roster.
Purdy sits seventh in QBR despite Aiyuk and Christian McCaffrey missing most of the season. The Iowa State alum still ranks fourth in Y/A (8.4) and has delivered 275 rushing yards — far more than he offered in 16 games last year. He is on the cusp of receiving the biggest raise in NFL history, as the seventh-round deal averages $934K per annum. 49ers CEO Jed York pointed to the team already planning for a Purdy payday, and while rumblings about a Kirk Cousins trade serving as a potential fallback option (thus reuniting he and Shanahan, Washington’s OC at the time the veteran was drafted) have surfaced, nothing serious has come out regarding any real considerations of separating from Purdy.
With the exception of Prescott, Cousins and Lamar Jackson, high-end QB paydays in the fifth-year option era commence before or during the player’s contract year. QB tags are rare. The 49ers could keep Purdy at a $1.1MM base salary next season and prepare for a 2026 tag at roughly $45MM, but they then run the risk of the market rising down the road. It can also be argued the market might not change much in 2025, as the 2021 and ’22 draft classes have not brought extension candidates. Lawrence has already been paid, with the other four first-round QBs from 2021 not being in line for monster pacts. The 2022 early-round crop has been even worse, with Purdy the only extension candidate to come from that disappointing QB draft.
The NFL’s $50MM-per-year club expanded to nine this offseason, and Josh Allen will be a candidate to eclipse Prescott’s contract perhaps as early as 2025. The MVP frontrunner does not carry the contractual leverage Prescott did, in being tied to his $43MM-per-year accord through 2027, but the Bills will need to address this team-friendly deal at some point. Allen’s six-year deal is as close as any QB has come to accepting team-friendly terms in line with Mahomes’. The three-time Super Bowl MVP is still signed through 2031 at $45MM per, giving the Chiefs tremendous flexibility. But his peers have, as expected, still opted for shorter-term deals that would allow for more prime-years paydays.
Barring Purdy accepting Mahomes- or Allen-level terms, the 49ers will need to pay up and make sacrifices elsewhere. That would stand to impact their loaded (when healthy) roster. That will mark a significant change for the franchise, though the team already had Garoppolo on top-market (at the time) terms and still churned out winning squads. San Francisco’s Shanahan-era blueprints have come with and without a veteran-QB deal on the payroll.
Starting over at quarterback would represents a massive risk, and for a team that missed badly when trying to do so (Lance) earlier this decade, it might not be one to take. Purdy has proven effective in Shanahan’s offense, putting him on the cusp of the NFL’s latest quarterback megadeal. How it comes together will shape the market for future passers.
Given how disappointing most of the other arms from the 2021 and ’22 drafts have been, Purdy suddenly resides as the QB market’s centerpiece player for the 2025 offseason. While the 49ers are no strangers to contract drama, it currently appears more likely than not they will stay the course and not become the team that refuses to pay a passer the going rate. Purdy’s asking price topping Prescott’s may change that, but a deal between the Lawrence-Love level and where the Cowboys’ leverage-fueled QB raised the market is probably something the 49ers will need to stomach.
49ers GM John Lynch Shuts Down Kyle Shanahan Rumors
The curse of a Super Bowl hangover may be just a superstition, but 49ers fans may be believers after suffering through a brutally injury-plagued season for the second time immediately following a loss in the sport’s season finale. The last time San Francisco missed the playoffs, they finished 6-10 in 2020, following their first loss to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. After losing to them again this past February, the 49ers currently sit at 5-7, good for last place in the NFC West. 
Going from just missing out on the ultimate prize in football to losing more games than you’re winning is obviously going to create an adverse reaction in fans, but those in the Bay Area are reportedly questioning if head coach Kyle Shanahan‘s seat is beginning to heat up. General manager John Lynch shut down any rumors of that nature today before they could even begin to take root, per Kevin Patra of NFL.com.
“The standard here is to win championships, and we’ve fallen short of that, I understand,” Lynch began, “but we have an excellent head coach, and the fact that people are talking about stuff like that, I do find it comical.”
Lynch points out that, despite the lack of Lombardi trophies, San Francisco has seen unprecedented success under Shanahan. The team has won the NFC West in four of the past five seasons, they’ve played in each of the past three NFC Championship games, and they’ve appeared in two Super Bowls. While disappointment over the current season is warranted, the want for change in the head coaching position may be a bit of an overreaction.
This is especially likely due to the reason the 49ers have experienced losing seasons when they have: injuries. During their 6-10 season, the team saw Nick Mullens make eight starts and C.J. Beathard make two starts when Jimmy Garoppolo‘s 2020 season came to an end after only playing six games. Starting running back Raheem Mostert only got eight games thanks to two stints on injured reserve, forcing starts by Jeff Wilson and Jerick McKinnon. Brandon Aiyuk missed four games, George Kittle missed eight games, and Deebo Samuel missed nine games that year, as well. On defense, ends Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas missed all but two games, linebacker Kwon Alexander missed 11, and defensive backs Richard Sherman and Jaquiski Tartt missed 11 and nine games, respectively.
This year, Aiyuk suffered a season-ending injury after only seven games, Christian McCaffrey‘s two stints on IR have limited him to only four contests, and even McCaffrey’s surprisingly successful replacement, Jordan Mason, has now been lost for an extended time. On defense, safety Talanoa Hufanga has struggled to return to the field, cornerback Charvarius Ward has missed four games, and defensive tackle Javon Hargrave only played in three games before suffering a season-ending injury. They’ve even had to shuffle special teamers as kicker Jake Moody and punter Mitch Wishnowsky have missed a combined six games.
Lynch understands this better than most, considering it’s been his job to restock at the thinning positions. “I think we’ve been through a lot as a team — this current team — with a lot of stuff that has happened to members of our organization,” Lynch explained. “Injuries, tragic circumstances, ultimately those are just excuses. One thing I can tell you is: I’m proud of how this group has stuck together, had each other’s back. The other thing I can tell you is: the story’s not written yet. We’re still grinding, and we’re still playing.”
He’s not wrong. Despite sitting at 11th in the NFC and last in the West, the 49ers are only two games back of the division-leading Seahawks. Next Gen Stats gives San Francisco a 10 percent chance to make the playoffs and a five percent chance to win the division — long odds, but they’re certainly not dead.
Lastly, an old adage still holds very true: if you’re going to fire a head coach, there should be someone better that you can hire right away. With Shanahan, the situation seems to be the opposite. If the Niners were to part ways with the 44-year-old skipper, any team with an opening (and likely some without a current opening) would be falling over themselves to add him to their staff.
For now, it seems Shanahan is safe. Lynch told the media, “We’re 100 percent behind Kyle and what he brings to our organization.” There doesn’t appear to be any heat on Shanahan’s seat at this time.
Buccaneers CB Troy Hill Placed On IR
The Buccaneers’ depth at cornerback continues to be an issue in 2024. Five weeks after acquiring the veteran 33-year-old corner, Tampa Bay will now officially put Troy Hill on injured reserve, per Jenna Laine of ESPN. He joins Bryce Hall on IR and Josh Hayes and Tykee Smith from the secondary on the injury report. 
The Bucs added Hill to their practice squad near the end of October, a little over a week after his release from the Panthers. He wasn’t able to play in his first two games with Tampa Bay as he dealt with ankle and foot issues. Finally, two weeks ago, he debuted with his fifth career team after a couple of limited practices. He was likely playing through the issues, though, as in both games he appeared in, Hill only saw three special teams snaps. Adding a knee injury to his issues forced the team’s hand to place him on IR.
Hill wasn’t likely to come in and take starting snaps across from Zyon McCollum, the only cornerback, and one of only three defenders, to start every game this season, but his depth was very necessary. Jamel Dean missed a four-game stretch before making it back for the last two games, rookie nickelback Tykee Smith has missed four of the team’s past five games, and undrafted rookie Tyrek Funderburk has worked his way into eight games this year.
Some of Hill’s best years have come in the slot. During his time with the Rams, he recorded at least two interceptions in three straight years, finishing 2020 as the league-leader in interception return yards (119) and interceptions returned for touchdowns (2), adding on a fumble return for a touchdown that year, as well.
Hill has struggled to find the same success he has experienced in Los Angeles elsewhere in the NFL, though. Over his time in Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Carolina, Hill was viewed as a rotational defensive back, only tallying nine of his 60 career starts outside of LA.
For a former undrafted free agent out of Oregon, Hill has enjoyed a long career in the NFL, but seeing as his age-33 season could be ending with a limp, we may be seeing his time in the league coming to a quiet end. He still has time to try to make a return before the end of the season, and the Buccaneers do have a few IR activations remaining, but for now, Tampa Bay will need to look elsewhere for cornerback depth.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/6/24
Today’s minor NFL transactions:
Cincinnati Bengals
- Placed on IR: LB Logan Wilson (story)
New Orleans Saints
- Placed on IR: TE Taysom Hill (story)
New York Giants
- Claimed off waivers (from Seahawks): CB Dee Williams
Williams, an undrafted rookie out of Tennessee, had appeared in every game for Seattle so far this year. While he only managed four snaps on defense in that time, Williams was the team’s primary punt returner and was back on kickoffs, as well.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/6/24
Here are Friday’s practice squad moves:
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: DT Michael Dwumfour, DT T.Y. McGill
Detroit Lions
- Signed: S Loren Strickland
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: T Coy Cronk
- Placed on practice squad injured list: G Henry Byrd
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: RB Jonathan Ward
- Released: DT Domenique Davis
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: P Ty Zentner
- Placed on practice squad injured list: OL Jason Peters
Peters has not seen any game action this season, keeping him from an official 21st NFL slate. Peters, 42, would make NFL history by becoming the first O-lineman to be on an active roster in a 21st season. After seeing action in eight games last season in Seattle, making two starts, Peters has not climbed to the team’s 53-man roster yet this year. Despite Abraham Lucas coming back, George Fant is back on IR. And Peters remains on the team’s practice squad. Though, he is running out of time to turn his insurance role into in-game duties.
McGill is not quite on the Josh Johnson journeyman tier, but the 10th-year defensive lineman has been with 10 teams. The Browns are not a new one, as he previously stopped through Cleveland during the 2017 season. McGill, 32, played in one game for the 49ers this season. He had spent three years in San Francisco but is now roster depth back in Cleveland, where he played three games in 2017.