SANTA CLARA, Calif. — How does perhaps the best secondary in the league integrate a pair of playmakers into the lineup?
That’s the rich-get-richer challenge facing the 49ersThe cornerback will be available in the weeks ahead Jason VerrettSafety Jimmie WardBoth are getting ready to get off their respective injury list. Each of them practiced on Wednesday for the first-ever time this season, opening up a three-week window for their inclusion to the 53 man roster.
It was Verrett’s first practice session since tearing an ACL in Week 1 last year. It was Ward’s first since pulling a hamstring on Aug. 14.
“There’s a chance,” Kyle Shanahan said of both players’ availability for Sunday’s game against the Panthers.
Verrett has dealt with an array of injuries — including two ACL tears and a torn Achilles — since entering the league in 2015, and he’s played in just 15 games since joining the 49ers in 2019. Verrett was a shining light on an otherwise ill 49ers defense in 2020 when he was fit. He was a starter in 13 of the remaining games, and he gave up just one touchdown. He also grabbed two interceptions. When he was being targeted, opposing quarterbacks had a 76.3 passer score.
“Jason’s the man out there,” Shanahan said after Verrett came down with an end zone interception against the Rams2020. “The way he carries himself, the way he likes to mix it up, he loves playing football, loves the physicality of the game.
