SF 49ers: 5 moves John Lynch can make to help salvage 2020
By Peter Panacy
No. 2: SF 49ers should place Jason Verrett back on IR
Jason Verrett is one of those classic “what could have been?” stories. A promising first-round pick of the San Diego Chargers back in 2014, Verrett achieved Pro Bowl status the following year and looked every part the lockdown defensive back the Chargers envisioned him to be.
But, oh, the injuries.
Since the start of the 2016 season, Verrett has played in only six regular-season games, including one with San Francisco in which he saw a mere two snaps in Week 3 back in 2019. After that brief stint, the 49ers placed Verrett on injured reserve, and he didn’t make an appearance for the rest of the year.
Early in training camp, Verrett seemed poised to earn a starting job alongside Sherman. But another hamstring injury prematurely ended those hopes, and Verrett has now found himself inactive for both Weeks 1 and 2 while recovering from the injury.
Should the Niners need to open up a roster spot for a player like Ross Cockrell, moving Verrett from a weekly inactive list to injured reserve makes much more sense. Besides, health questions surrounding Sherman, as well as Ahkello Witherspoon’s question marks, prompts the roster decisions to be better made here.
It’s a frustrating storyline for Verrett. But John Lynch would be better served by using that roster spot on someone else.