49ers Injury Report: Arik Armstead Could be Placed on Injured Reserve

Arik Armstead will miss the 49ers Week 5 matchup against the Panthers with both of his feet injured. The 49ers are considering placing him on Injured Reserve as a result.

Another player for the 49ers is an injured reserve candidate.

Arik Armstead has been ruled out for the 49ers Week 5 matchup against the Panthers with injuries to both feet.

"Still got some things with both feet, so we know it's this week, it'll probably be next week too, so I'm calling it week-to-week,” Kyle Shanahan said.

Talk about bad luck. It was already going to be a major hindrance for Armstead to deal with plantar fasciitis in one feet, but now he has the other foot hurting. It is going to take some time for Armstead to get anywhere near full strength, which is why Injured Reserve is on the table for him.

“We can, we may," Shanahan on potentially placing Armstead on Injured Reserve. "But we don't have to decide that now. We're still less than 53, and we won't decide that very fast. We possibly could actually decide that on Arik by tomorrow, but we still have a lot more to discuss in talking with him because I know we have four games then the Bye Week, so we'll see how that works out.”

I would bet that the 49ers place Armstead on Injured Reserve to let him heal up and rehab for at least the next four weeks. His absence in the last games for the 49ers has not been detrimental to the success of the defense. They will be fine without him thanks to the amazing depth on the defensive line. 

Kevin Givens, Hassan Ridgeway, Charles Omenihu, Kerry Hyder and Akeem Spence have each stepped up incredibly thus far. I see no reason for them to not continue their sweet performances the rest of the way. If Armstead does in fact get placed on Injured Reserve, then that will place the 49ers with the fifth-most players on it. 

As for Javon Kinlaw, I wouldn't rule him out as an Injured Reserve candidate either. He's in the same boat as Armstead with an injury that hasn't improved. It's starting to look like a case of "different season, same story" with Kinlaw. Expecting him to ever find a good bill of health for a long stretch of the season looks like a fantasy.

The 49ers should just let them rest up for the next month and hope that it is enough for them to help them push for the playoffs in the second-half of the season.