The San Francisco 49ers will once again have to navigate life without former All-Pro safety Talanoa Hufanga.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan on Tuesday told reporters in a press conference that Hufanga has torn ligaments in his wrist and will miss about a month, per Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Hufanga injured his wrist in the first half of the 49ers’ Week 5 loss to the Arizona Cardinals. He left to the locker room and was quickly ruled out – an indication that the injury might be at least semi-serious.
It’s been a rough go for the 2022 All-Pro over the last couple of years. He tore his ACL in Week 11 last season and wasn’t able to return during training camp. He wound up missing the 49ers’ first two games this season.
Hufanga made it through his Week 3 debut healthy, but rolled his ankle in practice in the lead-up to Week 4 and wasn’t able to play in the team’s win over the New England Patriots. He returned in Week 5 where he hurt his wrist early.
Now he’ll miss a month, which could mean he’s out only three games. The 49ers face the Seahawks on Thursday, then host the Chiefs on Oct. 20 and the Cowboys on Oct. 27. Then they have a bye week and return on Nov. 10 against the Buccaneers in Tampa, which would be the earliest he’s able to come back.
In the meantime it’s likely that rookie Malik Mustapha will fill in as the starter after snagging that job away from veteran George Odum. Odum was the starter throughout camp and in the first two weeks. Mustapha took all the defensive snaps for San Francisco after Hufanga’s Week 5 injury.
