Shanahan reveals one 49ers roster move he wishes he had back originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
The 49ers are allowed to bring back only one more player off injured reserve for the remainder of the season, including the playoffs.
San Francisco kept a spot open for running back Elijah Mitchell, who is expected to receive that designation over defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway (pectoral).
“That was the hard thing for Ridgeway, so it’ll probably come down to Ridge and Elijah, and Elijah, from a health standpoint, is a lot further along than him,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday. “The odds are that’s where we’re going to go.”
If there was one move the team would like to have back, it would have been the early season decision to use one of its return-to-play designations on linebacker Curtis Robinson.
“Hindsight is 20/20, obviously,” Shanahan said.
Robinson spent the first five games of the season on injured reserve with an ankle injury. He appeared in three games on special teams but was inactive for six games in a row before the team waived him Friday in order to activate defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw.
The 49ers expect to re-sign Robinson to the practice squad.
Shanahan said the team opted to use a return designation on Robinson because of the depth he provided, as well as the expectation he would be a big factor on special teams.
“We had a number of guys down at one time,” Shanahan said. “We put a number of guys on IR so we could fill the roster. Those are the gambles you got to take, and you end up being one short at the end of the year.”
There is a chance Ridgeway could be available as early as the NFC Championship Game, if the 49ers advance that far in the postseason. But once the decision is made with Mitchell, the book on Ridgeway’s season would be closed.
The team did not place quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (foot), wide receiver Deebo Samuel (knee, ankle) or defensive tackle Kevin Givens (knee) on injured reserve, so they do not factor into the puzzle. Each player remains on the 49ers’ 53-man roster.
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Samuel is expected back in plenty of time to assume a full role in the playoffs. Garoppolo remains a long shot to be cleared in order to serve as Brock Purdy’s backup in the postseason.
Mitchell already was activated off injured reserve earlier this season. In addition to Robinson, the other spots have been used on free safety Jimmie Ward, offensive lineman Colton McKivitz, defensive lineman Jordan Willis, linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair and Kinlaw.