The Harsh Reality Behind 49ers' Injury Problem Exposed by NFL Execs

The San Francisco 49ers have been one of the most injury-affected teams in the NFL in recent seasons. That trend has led many observers to question why the team consistently deals with so many injuries. Some theories have even pointed to factors such as the practice facilities or the fields the team uses. However, some people around the league believe the explanation may be much simpler: the roster-building strategy itself.

Are the San Francisco 49ers signing too many injury-prone players?

Mike Sando of The Athletic spoke with several NFL executives to gather league-wide perspectives on every team. When discussing the 49ers, one common theme emerged: some around the league believe San Francisco may be setting itself up for more injuries because of the types of players it signs.

“Everyone starts talking about the substation and, ‘Why are we always hurt?’” one executive said. “It’s because you sign hurt players. Mike Evans is going to miss 4–6 games this year, Dre Greenlaw is going to miss eight, and you are going to wonder why your players are always hurt.”
Mike Sando

That criticism highlights a concern that has been raised before. Beyond Evans and Greenlaw, players such as Robert Jones and Nate Hobbs are also notable additions who may start this season after missing significant time the year before.

This approach is not entirely new for San Francisco. There have been similar concerns in past draft classes and roster moves. Ricky Pearsall reportedly had shoulder questions entering the NFL Draft, while Javon Kinlaw and Mykel Williams both had limited pre-draft processes due to injuries at the time they were selected. Even Nick Bosa missed time during his college career at Ohio State Buckeyes before entering the draft.

Some observers also point to coaching tendencies as a contributing factor. Head coach Kyle Shanahan has occasionally been criticized for relying heavily on certain players. That approach can lead to high workloads, as seen with Christian McCaffrey during the past season. When a roster already includes players with injury histories, heavy usage can further increase the risk of missed time.

San Francisco 49er — Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

Taken together, these patterns suggest the injury issues may not be tied to external factors like facilities or environment. Instead, critics argue that the team’s strategy of acquiring talented players with previous injury concerns and then relying heavily on them naturally increases the likelihood of injuries occurring.

To be fair, this approach has also produced results. The 49ers often acquire talented players at reduced cost because of those injury concerns. When those players remain healthy, the roster can look extremely strong on paper and capable of competing with any team in the league.

However, the downside of that strategy is that injuries can accumulate at the worst possible moments. When several players with prior injury histories miss time simultaneously, it can limit the team’s ceiling during key stretches of the season.

The 49ers may have examined external explanations for their injury issues, but critics around the league suggest the real answer could lie in how the roster is built. As the team enters another season with similar types of additions, the question remains whether the strategy will produce different results this time.