49ers to be challenged by recent rash of devastating injuries

The 49ers may be getting hot at the right time, but a swarm of injuries could ultimately derail a challenging portion of the upcoming schedule of games.

In some ways, the San Francisco 49ers’ commanding 37-15 Week 5 victory over the Carolina Panthers felt like a loss.

And it especially did for veteran cornerback Emmanuel Moseley, who went from a fringe starter back in 2019 all the way to being a top-performing defensive back in the Niners’ revamped secondary. His efforts in the win over Carolina included a casual interception returned for a touchdown that helped set the stage for San Francisco’s second-half domination.

However, in garbage time, Moseley went down with a torn ACL on the last of his two pass breakups, prompting a safe notion he probably would have preferred letting the pass go for a catch in order to stay healthy.

Moseley’s injury is of the season-ending variety, which will challenge the secondary moving forward. However, the 49ers also watched EDGE Nick Bosa (groin), kicker Robbie Gould (leg) and safety Jimmie Ward (hand) all exit the game with injuries, not to return.

One can only hope they’re able to return in a relatively quick fashion.

The Niners’ depth, particularly on defense, helped make up for Bosa and Ward’s respective absences, yet that same depth could easily be tested over the next three weeks with some challenging games ahead:

• Week 6 @ Atlanta Falcons
• Week 7 vs. Kansas City Chiefs
• Week 8 @ Los Angeles Rams

The 2-3 Falcons may be inferior to San Francisco, but the second game of a back-to-back East Coast road trip can always be tricky, while welcoming the red-hot 3-1 Chiefs to town should be a premier matchup (why wasn’t this in prime time?).

And those Rams will be seeking retribution for what the 49ers did to them in Week 4.

The Niners have already shown they can overcome serious injuries, but it’s always a delicate balance with an easy tipping point.

Hopefully, San Francisco isn’t close.

49ers will receive reinforcements soon

It’s not all bad injury-related news for the 49ers despite the season-ending loss of Moseley.

The Niners recently opened up the practice window for veteran cornerback Jason Verrett, who suffered the same injury back in Week 1 of the 2021 season and has been on an injury list ever since, including missing the first five games of 2022.

If Verrett is 100 percent, San Francisco’s cornerback room should remain strong enough.

On top of that, and despite Jeff Wilson’s 120-yard performance in Week 5, the 49ers are anticipating getting two of their other running backs soon, too, Elijah Mitchell and Tyrion Davis-Price.

Likewise, given he hasn’t been placed on injured reserve, All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams (ankle) might be poised to reclaim his starting job after going down with his injury in Week 3.