The San Francisco 49ers‘ injury issues reached critical mass in the first half of Sunday’s game against the New York Jets, with quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, defensive end Nick Bosa and running back Raheem Mostert all ruled out for the second half.
After playing through an ankle injury for most of the first half, Garoppolo retreated to the locker room early for halftime X-rays and did not return to the field to open the third quarter. The team soon ruled him out with a right ankle injury.
Garoppolo suffered the injury on the Niners’ fourth play from scrimmage when he was sacked by Jets defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and went to the ground awkwardly. He finished the half and went 14-of-16 for 131 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions for a passer rating of 140.4 before he was ruled out.
Nick Mullens replaced Garoppolo on San Francisco’s first drive of the second half.
Bosa suffered a knee injury and was taken to the locker room on a cart.
With a little more than five minutes to go in the quarter, Bosa was engaged with Jets tight end Trevon Wesco on a running play and his left leg buckled as he attempted to get off of the block and get to running back Frank Gore.
Bosa briefly attempted to sit up before medical personnel rushed to the field to check on him. A cart came out soon after and took him to the locker room. The team declared Bosa out for the game early in the second quarter.
A couple of plays later, defensive tackle Solomon Thomas also suffered a left knee injury and was taken to the locker room on a cart. He, too, was ruled out for the rest of the game.
Exactly when Mostert hurt his knee was unclear but he too went to the locker room late in the second quarter and was ruled out early in the third. He had eight carries for 92 yards and a touchdown and two catches for 15 yards before his day came to an end.
The injuries are just the latest on an increasingly lengthy list of ailments plaguing the team in the first couple of weeks. The 49ers started Sunday’s game without tight end George Kittle (knee sprain), cornerback Richard Sherman (strained calf), receiver Deebo Samuel (foot) and defensive end Dee Ford (neck).
