5 injured SF 49ers whose post-bye week returns help most

No. 1: SF 49ers Running Back Raheem Mostert

Brandon Aiyuk has helped make the lack of wide receivers elsewhere on the Niners roster a little more digestible. Getting Deebo Samuel back helps a lot, too.

But no offensive player with the potential to return has been missed more than Raheem Mostert, who was the engine behind San Francisco’s playoff push last year and already showed plenty of explosiveness early this season before his knee injury hit in Week 6 against the Los Angeles Rams.

More from SF 49ers Roster

• 49ers roster: 5 players who could get cut after 2023 NFL Draft
• 49ers roster: Insanely early 53-man roster projection for 2023
• Kyle Shanahan is wrongly handling his QB situation with Trey Lance
• Zane Gonzalez trade doesn’t mean 49ers won’t draft a kicker
• 49ers roster: Top remaining free-agent tackles on the market

Jeff Wilson made up the difference a week later, but as noted before, the SF 49ers ground game has been abysmal ever since.

Kyle Shanahan also added he’s hoping Mostert will be available off injured reserve for Week 12 against the Rams, and the Niners couldn’t get him back soon enough. Considering the many problems their offensive line has had this year in run blocking, a runner with explosiveness is going to be needed in getting the ground game back into some form of respectability.

Like Samuel’s return helping Nick Mullens, Mostert coming back will put some teeth into the rush offense, making Mullens’ life a bit easier when factoring in play action.

And that might be enough to ensure the SF 49ers stay in contention in games over the final stretch of the season.