The San Francisco 49ers will help put a bow on Week 6 in the NFL when they host the Washington Commanders on "Monday Night Football." As they look to remain undefeated this season, they may need to do so without one of their main pillars on offense -- Mike Evans. The star receiver is officially listed as questionable for the primetime contest with what the team lists as rib and Achilles injuries.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan noted this week that Evans was also dealing with Achilles soreness. The wideout did not practice at all this week, which leaves his status for week 6 firmly up in the air.
It appears as if whether Evans plays or not depends on who you ask, as reporters on the beat have conflicting opinions on if he'll see the field. For instance, The San Francisco Standard's David Lombardi relayed on Saturday that Evans is "on track to play" based on his read of the situation. Conversely, KNBR's Larry Krueger said Saturday, "Based on what I saw, I'd be very surprised if Mike Evans plays on Monday."
Evans did not practice at all this week, with reports noting that he was mostly working off to the side.
The 33-year-old has a history of playing through injuries and has not missed a contest to this point despite missing time in practice. Last week, Evans missed Thursday's practice with his rib injury, but ended up playing in the Week 5 win over Seattle. That said, this is the first time all season that Evans missed the entire week of practice.
Evans signed a three-year, $42.4 million deal with the 49ers at the start of free agency, snapping his 12-season tenure with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. So far, the future Hall of Fame receiver has been as advertised and is coming off his first 100-yard game of the season, hauling in seven balls for 113 yards and a touchdown in the win over the Seahawks. Through five games, Evans has caught 24 of his 34 targets for 326 yards and three touchdowns.
Along with potentially Evans, the 49ers offense will already be without fellow receiver Deebo Samuel Jr., who has been ruled out with a hamstring injury, while Christian Kirk is questionable with a calf injury.
