The 49ers’ receiver issues just got worse. Here’s their plan moving forward

The 49ers find themselves in even more troubled waters at wide receiver.

Rookie Jordan Watkins suffered a high ankle sprain during the preseason opener against the Denver Broncos. Watkins didn’t begin feeling ankle soreness until the next day, presumably after adrenaline had worn off, and an MRI confirmed the injury.

The 49ers expect Watkins — a fourth-round pick out of Ole Miss who has enjoyed a productive offseason and caught a 50-yard pass from quarterback Mac Jones on Saturday — to be out for about a month.

That puts the rookie in danger of missing the 49ers’ Sept. 7 season opener at Seattle, where coach Kyle Shanahan thought he might be a significant contributor.

“That’s why it was really unfortunate for Watkins to get that setback, because we really believed he could have helped us early,” Shanahan said Monday. “But he needed to practice to be able to help us.”

The 49ers will certainly be down their top receiver, Brandon Aiyuk, whom Shanahan doesn’t expect to return until Week 6 at the earliest. And they’ll also likely be missing veteran Demarcus Robinson, who’s facing an early-season league suspension after pleading no contest to a DUI charge.

Shanahan said Robinson is in the midst of the appeals process with the NFL.

“I always just plan for the worst and hope for the best,” Shanahan said. “He’ll play a lot more in the preseason, but hopefully we can shorten that with an appeal process.”

The team is also in murky waters with receiver Jauan Jennings, who hasn’t practiced in two weeks with what Shanahan continues to call a calf injury. Jennings also wants a new contract, which is a tricky proposition coming off the 49ers’ massive 2024 investment in Aiyuk — a deal worth $30 million annually that hasn’t yielded the desired dividends.

For now, second-year player Ricky Pearsall is the only first-string receiver practicing for the 49ers. While he does continue to deliver — Pearsall even danced with QB Mac Jones to celebrate a red-zone touchdown at Monday’s practice — the 49ers readily acknowledge that they’re on much thinner ice than they were in 2024.

Their approach with 32-year-old receiver Robbie Chosen (formerly Anderson) illustrates that. Last year, Chosen — who made a diving touchdown catch from Jones at Monday’s practice — was with the 49ers from Aug. 12 to Aug. 27. The team offered him a practice-squad spot at the end of that two-week term, but Chosen elected to sign with the Miami Dolphins — who had room for him on their 53-man roster.

This time around, it's the 49ers who are anticipating having the necessary space to keep Chosen on their 53-man roster.

“It’s a lot more open than it’s ever been before,” Shanahan said. “I think he’s got a better opportunity because of our situation to have a chance to make this team.”

There is at least a morsel of good news coming the 49ers’ way.

Second-year receiver Jacob Cowing should be back at practice Tuesday after clearing the necessary hurdles in his return from a hamstring strain. Cowing was hurt during warmups July 23, the first day of camp. He received rave reviews from Shanahan for his offseason work, which included a stint training with both Brock Purdy and Jones in Jacksonville, and was set to battle Watkins for a potentially hefty snap load during camp.

So while the 49ers will continue chasing the elusive goal of seeing both Cowing and Watkins on the field at the same time, they’ll have at least one speedy wideout back to ease the pain of their latest loss.

The other key name to watch is veteran Russell Gage, who hasn’t played an NFL regular-season game since 2022. Gage tore his patellar tendon late in 2023 training camp and considered retirement over the past two years before signing on with the 49ers’ practice squad late in 2024. Prior to the injury, Gage was a productive wideout for the Atlanta Falcons and — given a solid camp so far — Shanahan believes “he’s back to being a really good NFL player now.”

Other options on the roster are seventh-round pick Junior Bergen, who delivered a 26-yard punt return Saturday; Terique Owens, the son of former 49ers Hall of Fame wideout Terrell Owens; and Isaiah Hodgins, a San Jose native who attended high school at Berean Christian in Walnut Creek.

• The 49ers signed defensive end Trevis Gipson, 28, to help assuage the temporary loss of rookie Mykel Williams — who’ll miss about a week with a hyperextended knee. Gipson saw immediate first-team action and tipped a Purdy pass to Nick Bosa for an interception. It was a splashy debut for Gipson, who has 11 career sacks.

• Jeff Wilson Jr. is back. The 49ers traded the running back to Miami in 2022 after they’d acquired Christian McCaffrey. But now Wilson, 29, is needed to fortify another room beleaguered by injuries.

The 49ers placed veteran Ameer Abdullah, who hurt his ribs Saturday, on injured reserve.

• Rookie defensive back Upton Stout isn’t expected back until Thursday’s joint practice against the Raiders in Las Vegas. The sore calf that kept him out of Saturday’s game against Denver persisted into Monday.

Fellow DB Renardo Green, who’s been out two weeks with a hamstring strain, will likely miss this week after failing to hit some of his speed markers Monday.

Safety Ji’Ayir Brown was back at practice Monday — but with the second-team defense. Rookie Marques Sigle remained with the first team after his solid seven-tackle performance in the preseason opener.

Does Sigle have a chance to start as a rookie?

“Yeah, I’d say so,” Shanahan said. “I think there's a lot of open competition there. I thought he had a really good game — special teams and on defense — so I wouldn’t rule him out for that.”