The San Francisco 49ers have seemingly been cursed on defense this season, losing linebacker Fred Warner and edge rusher Nick Bosa.
They may have to lean heavily on veteran linebacker Eric Kendricks going forward.
San Francisco signed Kendricks to the practice squad after an injury to Tatum Bethune, who had been filling in for Warner following his injury. Curtis Robinson has had to hold down the fort as of late, but the former Stanford product could certainly use some help.
It was something of a surprise that Kendricks went unsigned in free agency for as long as he did. He was coming off a solid 2024 campaign with the Dallas Cowboys in which he recorded 138 tackles, four tackles for loss, three sacks, and two interceptions.
Maybe he was holding out for a contract on a team where he would have been a starter, but it seems the market overlooked the 33-year-old Kendricks.
With all of San Francisco's injuries at the linebacker position, it seemed like a natural fit to bring him in to at the very least get more depth.
However, Kendricks could end up playing a very large role for San Francisco the rest of the season and beyond. Bethune is banged up, and the hope is he will be back before the end of the regular season, but it would not be the first time a 49ers injury was given a premature timetable.
Robinson plays hard, but he is definitely a bit unrefined, so Kendricks could end up being the Niners' best option at middle linebacker down the stretch.
Dee Winters has done a fairly solid job as the weak-side linebacker this season, and rookie Nick Martin has been worked into the linebacker mix out of necessity, but it seems clear the coaching staff still does not fully trust him out there just yet.
Unfortunately, Kendricks is already dealing with calf tightness, which makes sense given he has not played all year. One hopes it does not turn into a bigger issue, but the fact San Francisco may be relying on a banged-up veteran to hold things together on defense says a lot about how this season has gone.
Kendricks could end up being a very important name for the 49ers the rest of this season, though. They need him to get up to speed quickly to have adequate depth and potentially a starter.