The hits keep on coming for the San Francisco 49ers. The team is doing all it can to stay afloat and win games at this point despite being ravaged by injury over the last couple of weeks, and it was more than glad to bring in defensive end Ezekiel Ansah after having lost Nick Bosa for the season and other key players on the defensive line for multiple games. Ansah initially visited the 49ers but left without a deal in September, only to return shortly thereafter to sign a one-year, $3 million contract. There's now a chance he won't play out that deal this season, after having been knocked out of the Week 4 contest against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Ansah is feared to have suffered a torn bicep, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, an injury that could cost him significant time -- if not the rest of the season altogether. The 31-year-old defensive end will undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the severity of what was initially described as an arm injury, hoping the results somehow dodge the worst-case scenario.
The one-time Pro Bowler logged only 33 defensive snaps in two games for the 49ers before suffering the injury.
A former fifth overall pick of the Detroit Lions in 2013, Ansah made a name for himself in his six years in Michigan -- including landing honors as a second-team All-Pro -- before heading to the Seattle Seahawks in 2019 in free agency. He signed a one-year, $9 million deal at the time, allowing himself to re-enter the market in 2020, which is where the 49ers grabbed him in a dire moment of need that is now only exacerbated by his potential absence. To add insult to injury, San Francisco dropped a close one in their 25-20 loss to the Eagles at Levi's Stadium to level out at 2-2 on the year.
Their path to repeat as NFC champions continues to be wrought with landmines.
