Evan Anderson

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/28/24

Minor transactions and practice squad callups for the Week 4 weekend:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

  • Elevated: G Kyle Hergel

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

49ers Activate Talanoa Hufanga, Move Roster To 53

Two 49ers remain out out of the mix (but definitely not out of headlines, in Brandon Aiyuk‘s case), though both standouts are still employed by the team. Though, Trent Williams remains on the reserve/did not report list. Here is how the defending NFC champs pared their roster to 53 by today’s deadline:

Released:

Waived:

Activated from active/PUP list:

Placed on IR:

Placed on IR (return designation):

Placed on reserve/PUP list:

Hufanga’s status represents a positive development for a 49ers team in need of them. The All-Pro safety had been rumored to join Greenlaw on the reserve/PUP list. Avoiding it does not guarantee Hufanga will be ready for Week 1, but it keeps the fourth-year defender in the equation for the 49ers’ first four games. They are choosing to carry Hufanga on the 53-man roster and go week-to-week with him. This undoubtedly led to Walker being moved off the roster.

Conversely, Mitchell’s time with the team may be over. San Francisco surprised most by vaulting the 2021 sixth-round pick into a starting role to open that season, dropping Trey Sermon to a backup spot. Mitchell operated as San Francisco’s preferred starter — as long as he was healthy, which was sporadic — until the October 2022 Christian McCaffrey trade. The 49ers now have Jordan Mason and rookie Isaac Guerendo as CMC backups.

A hamstring injury has sidelined Mitchell, potentially opening the door to an injury settlement. Davis will be able to return this season for the 49ers; Mitchell’s designation would prevent that. The 49ers are down to seven IR activations as a result of the Davis decision. A 2022 sixth-round pick, Davis remains in the team’s plans despite injuries largely keeping him out of action. Davis has played just three NFL games, and he suffered another injury — a knee issue requiring surgery — during camp.

The 49ers, who will bring many of these players back to the practice squad, cut two recent third-round picks — Gray and Latu. The latter has not played yet as a pro, missing his entire rookie season with an ACL tear. Gray has been unable to carve out a role on a 49ers team that has seen Jauan Jennings stick as the team’s WR3; rookies Ricky Pearsall and Jacob Cowing are also in the mix now.

49ers Sign Eight Undrafted Free Agents

The 49ers have been active signing their rookies to contracts, finalizing deals with six of their eight draft picks. The team also found time to add a group of undrafted free agents, as the team announced that they’ve signed eight rookie free agents:

Evan Anderson got a significant pay day to join the 49ers offseason roster. The Florida Atlantic product earned a $30K signing bonus and had $250K of his base salary guaranteed, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 in Houston. The defensive lineman was productive in four collegiate seasons, compiling 20 tackles for loss, seven sacks, and three fumble recoveries. Elsewhere on defense, Jaylen Mahoney joins the 49ers after snagging four interceptions and collecting 17 passes defended in fives seasons with the Commodores.

Tanner Mordecai bounced around during his college career. He didn’t play much in three seasons at Oklahoma before transferring to SMU, where he tossed 72 touchdowns across two seasons. He spent the 2023 campaign at Wisconsin, where he connected on nine touchdowns in 10 games. During rookie minicamp, he’ll be joined on the offensive side by Cody Schrader, who is coming off a breakout 2023 campaign where he collected 1,818 yards from scrimmage and 14 touchdowns. The 49ers also added Terique Owens, who is the son of former 49ers star wideout Terrell Owens.