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Jordan Watkins

Mac Jones To Start Week 3; Brock Purdy Potentially Available In Case Of Emergency

September 19th, 2025 at 7:41pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Brock Purdy‘s return to practice this week inspired some hope that he could suit up for the 49ers in Week 3, but head coach Kyle Shanahan said (via Matt Barrows of The Athletic) that it is “highly unlikely” he starts on Sunday. Instead, it will be Mac Jones under center in San Francisco against the Cardinals.

Purdy missed Week 2 due to injuries to his toe and shoulder. The shoulder issue no longer seems to be preventing him from playing, but the fourth-year quarterback practiced in a limited capacity for the last three days as the toe continued to ail him. His comments on Thursday suggested that he could be a game-time decision, depending on how he feels on Sunday.

Instead, it appears that decision will be made on Saturday, when the team is required to make roster decisions like inactives and practice squad elevations. Shanahan indicated that Purdy could still be active as the team’s second- or third-string quarterback, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. Pelissero’s partner at NFL Network, Ian Rapoport, expanded on that topic, explaining that, while a QB2 role may be a possibility, a QB3 role as a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency option makes far more sense.

If it’s determined tomorrow that Purdy can’t go or that he can only suit up as an emergency quarterback, practice squad passer Adrian Martinez will, once again, be called on to back up Jones. How they do that will be determined by Purdy’s situation. If Purdy is unable to suit up, Martinez would simply need to be designated a standard gameday practice squad elevation as he was last week. If Purdy suits up with the intention to serve in an emergency role, Martinez would need to be signed to the 53-man roster, since emergency third quarterbacks need to be on the active roster.

In other injury news, two rookies were injured in practice yesterday, per Barrows. While seventh-round guard Connor Colby is only listed as questionable with a groin injury, fourth-round wide receiver Jordan Watkins is reportedly a candidate for injured reserve with a calf injury.

Ely Allen contributed to this post.

Vikings, Jets, 49ers Seeking WR Help

August 21st, 2025 at 10:10am CST by Nikhil Mehta

AUGUST 21: To little surprise, Pelissero names Adam Thielen as a potential Vikings target (video link). Nothing is imminent, and the Panthers elected to keep him in the fold at last year’s trade deadline. Reuniting with Thielen would nevertheless allow for Minnesota to bring the former Pro Bowler back to where his first nine seasons took place as a starting-caliber option for 2025.

AUGUST 20: The Vikings are exploring a trade for a veteran wide receiver, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero and The Athletic’s Dianna Russini. The Jets and 49ers are also interested in adding a wideout, per Russini.

Minnesota will be without 2023 first-round pick Jordan Addison for the first three games of the season due to a DUI-related suspension. Justin Jefferson (hamstring) has returned to practice after missing much of training camp, but offseason signing Rondale Moore (knee) is out for the year and fourth-year receiver Jalen Nailor (hand) is currently “week-to-week,” according to head coach Kevin O’Connell.

Those absences would likely elevate tight end T.J. Hockenson to the No. 2 pass catcher role in the offense, but the Vikings seem to want more support for second-year quarterback (and first-year starter) J.J. McCarthy.

The Jets similarly have a clear WR1 (Garrett Wilson), a young quarterback (Justin Fields), and a veteran dealing with an injury (Allen Lazard). The hype surrounding veteran Josh Reynolds has faded over the course of the summer, and the rest of the team’s pass catchers are unproven as full-time starters. New York would love to see one of their young wideouts – particularly Malachi Corley, Xavier Gipson, Arian Smith, or Brandon Smith – emerge as a reliable secondary receiver, but it seems like none of the four has impressed in training camp as hoped.

The 49ers’ receiver room is still without Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings. The former is expected to be back around Week 6, while the latter is still nursing a calf injury (and seeking a new contract). The next man up, 2024 first-rounder Ricky Pearsall, seems poised for a Year 2 breakout, but his would-be running mate, nine-year veteran Demarcus Robinson, could begin the year on a suspension stemming from a 2024 DUI arrest.

Fourth-round rookie Jordan Watkins is also dealing with a high ankle sprain and may not be ready for Week 1. That would leave Pearsall to pair up with Jacob Cowing or Robbie Chosen, who barely played last year, or Russell Gage, who didn’t play at all last year. The 49ers are likely to make a move here before Week 1, with The Athletic’s Matt Barrows predicting multiple additions — for active-roster and practice squad spots — will unfold.

It’s unclear which receivers would be available on the trade market. An Adam Thielen reunion with the Vikings will likely be a popular mock trade in the coming weeks, and the Eagles may be willing to move 2022 first-round pick Jahan Dotson after acquiring John Metchie last week. The Bills also have a surplus of depth receivers and could move one before cutdown day for draft capital and cap relief, per The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/9/25

May 9th, 2025 at 9:10pm CST by Ely Allen

We saw a busy day of 2025 NFL Draft pick signings today. Here are the mid- to late-round picks who inked their four-year rookie deals:

Arizona Cardinals

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New York Giants

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders