Next man up runs out in San Francisco 49ers loss to Houston Texans

What a sobering loss.

Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

The San Francisco 49ers have been winning games with the next man up mentality. They have been able to get by with the depth and the talent that they do have stepping up for them.

On the road against the Houston Texans, it looked like the team had finally run out of gas, as they finally did not have enough to overcome the losses. 

San Francisco 49ers cannot overcome injuries in loss to Houston Texans

The San Francisco offense was always going to be in for a dog fight against a Texans defense that could be considered the best in the NFL. However, it was the defense that needed to win the game against a struggling and injured Texans offense. This is where they failed. 

To be fair, it was a hard task with the lack of bodies on the defense. We know about Nick Bosa and Fred Warner. However, they came into the game without Bryce Huff, and they lost Dee Winters along the way. Essentially, their next best rusher and linebacker also went down, leaving the group far too thin. On top of that, they lost Jordan Elliott and Sam Okuayinonu in the game as well. 

#49ers post-game injury report:
DT Jordan Elliott (ankle)
DE Sam Okuayinonu (ankle)
DT Alfred Collins (shoulder/returned to game)
LB Dee Winters (knee inflammation)

Shanahan said the two ankle injuries don't appear to be high-ankle sprains.

— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) October 26, 2025

The status of Winters and Elliott is unknown, but the defense may be too thin with them; if they lose these two, the unit simply cannot manage. 

Rookie Mykel Williams looks just like that, a rookie. He is not expected to be the top edge rusher; he was supposed to complement Bosa, Huff, and Yetur Gross-Matos. None of them is in the lineup, and it is making life tough for the rookie.

Elliott left the game and did not come back, but Alfred Collins left the game with a minor injury before coming back as well. Kalia Davis is playing with a cast on his hand, and Kevin Givens is playing his second game after missing the last two months due to an injury. 

Of the eight defensive linemen who were supposed to impact the 49ers' defense, the only one without an injury asterisk in this game was the rookie first-round pick. 

Sean Thomas-Imagn Images

Without Warner and Winters, they were missing nine of their top ten players in their defensive front. 

Playing with Trevis Gipson, Robert Beal, Tatum Bethune, and Luke Gifford is going to catch up to any defense. That group may struggle at times in the preseason. 

It is easy to pick apart the coaching, the stars, and question the future. Still, at some point, the cliches and lines cannot overcome not having the actual talent to win games. This caught up to San Francisco against Houston.