San Francisco 49ers’ Brandon Aiyuk walks onto the field during NFL football practice in Santa Clara, California, Tuesday, August 18, 2020. (AP Photo / Jeff Chiu, pool)
SANTA CLARA, California – The San Francisco 49ers had two major players left early Sunday with rookie receiver Brandon Aiyuk and edge rusher Dee Ford each injured to lower body.
There was no immediate word on the extent of the injuries.
Aiyuk grabbed the back of his left leg after pulling at a deep pace during team drills and did not return. The pickup from the first round from Arizona State was one of the more impressive players at the start of the camp and is counting on a big contender this season.
The Niners have already been hit hard by injuries at receiver already with starter Deebo Samuel leaving the entire training camp sidelined with a broken foot that could force him to miss time at the start of the season. Jalen Hurd tore his ACL during camp and will miss the full year and Richie James Jr. will miss the start of the season after breaking his wrist during offseason training.
Aiyuk was the 25th overall pick in San Francisco this year in his NFL Draft. The 22-year-old broke out in 2019 as a junior, defeating 1,192 and getting yards on 65 catches for eight touchdowns. His teammate, N’Keal Harry, was also a first-round pick the year before, allowing Aiyuk to appear as the no. 1 pass threat in the offense of the Sun Devils.
The Niners held their fourth straight day of padded practices Sunday as the team tried to get back to speed after a virtual offseason and late camp due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
San Francisco has a scheduled day off Monday before four more planned padded practices begin Tuesday in the final part of a shortened training camp.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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