The San Francisco 49ers’ running back problems aren’t getting any better.
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed Monday that Isaac Guerendo sustained a foot sprain in Sunday’s 38-13 win over the Chicago Bears. With a short week ahead of them — the 49ers will take on the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night — it’s unclear if Guerendo will be able to play.
"We'll evaluate him over the next few days and see if he's got a shot," via the 49ers' Lindsey Pallares.
While it seems like Guerendo’s injury is relatively minor, the 49ers are in a precarious position at running back with this latest setback.
The 49ers placed starting running back Christian McCaffrey on injured reserve last week after he went down with another leg injury. The team is hopeful that he can return at some point, but McCaffrey shared a message on social media that hinted that he was done for the season.
McCaffrey didn’t make his season debut until Week 10 while dealing with a calf and Achilles injury. If he is truly out for the rest of the season, he will have appeared in just four games. Backup running back Jordan Mason did a solid job of filling in for McCaffrey, but Mason was also placed on injured reserve with a high ankle sprain.
So that left Guerendo, who did a very solid job in Sunday’s win. He ran for 78 yards and had two touchdowns on 15 carriers, and he had another 50 receiving yards on two catches.
Guerendo didn’t seem too bothered by his foot injury on Sunday, either, which is a good sign.
"Everything is fine," Guerendo said after the game, <a data-i13n="cpos:3;pos:1" href="https://www.nbcsportsbayarea.com/nfl/san-francisco-49ers/isaac-guerendo-kyle-shanahan-chicago-bears/1811566/">via NBC Sports Bay Area</a>. "They were just being cautious. We got a quick turnaround this week, so just making sure we are good to go."
If Guerendo can't play on Sunday, Patrick Taylor Jr. is next up on the depth chart. He had a season-high 25 yards and a touchdown on seven carries on Sunday. Ke'Shawn Vaughn and Israel Abanikanda are also available.
The 49ers' win on Sunday snapped a three-game losing skid, which kept them in the race for a playoff spot despite their 6-7 record. A win on Thursday night against the Rams would go a long way toward that postseason push. If Guerendo isn't out on the field, though, it'll be that much harder for the 49ers to pull that off.