The San Francisco 49ers finally have a punter.
After releasing their lone punter as part of their final roster cuts, the 49ers were left without a player at a key special teams position. Thomas Morstead, who signed with the 49ers this offseason, wasn’t gone for long. He re-signed with the club when they placed wide receiver Jacob Cowing on injured reserve.
Cowing is dealing with a hamstring injury that has bothered him since the first day of training camp. He injured his hamstring, then tried returning ahead of the final preseason game and suffered another major injury to the same leg. Head coach Kyle Shanahan said the second-year WR would be out at least six weeks. By placing him on IR the 49ers have guaranteed he’ll miss at least the first four games.
It’s not a huge surprise the 49ers maneuvered this way. Morstead was not subject to waivers and likely had confirmation from San Francisco that he’d be returning once they completed their necessary roster moves.
By waiting until after the 90-man roster was cut down to 53, the 49ers ensured Cowing could come back. They could have placed him on IR with Kevin Givens ahead of final cuts and avoided making this extra move, but that would have also forced them to use another one of their eight return designations.
Given the nature of Cowing’s injury, there’s no guarantee he’ll be ready to return this season so this gives the 49ers some flexibility on whether they bring him back into the mix in 2025.
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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers exchange injured WR for punter in another roster move
Reporting by Kyle Madson, Niners Wire / Niners Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
