SANTA CLARA - Sunday's forecast for Buffalo calls for snow. Or rain. Or freezing rain. Or all of the above.

Whatever is coming off Lake Erie at kickoff, 49ers quarterback Shaun Hill insists he'll be ready for it.

Hill, who grew up playing football in cold and windy Parsons, Kan., said he's no novice when it comes to foul weather. In fact, he described one of the games he took part in while at Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College as having been played in monsoon conditions.

"I mean, you couldn't see the lines anywhere," Hill said. "By the end of the game, you couldn't tell who was on what team. ... The showers were clogged up after the game (with) mud."

Hill said wet conditions usually are more difficult than cold ones because a wet football gets slippery.

"The grip on the ball's a little bit different," he said of playing in the rain. "It's better if you have a looser grip on it. If you're trying to choke the ball, it's going to slip out."

In that regard, Mother Nature gave the 49ers a preview Wednesday. It rained throughout the morning, although the temperature in Santa Clara - 55 degrees at 3 p.m. - was about 20 degrees warmer than what is expected in Buffalo.

Hill's Midwest roots also might give him an advantage in bad weather games over his Los Gatos-raised counterpart, Trent Edwards. The former Stanford quarterback recalled a particularly rainy game in Corvallis, Ore., in 2003, but he said he mostly escaped adverse conditions playing in the Pacific-10 Conference.

Bills coach Dick Jauron, however, noted that Edwards dealt with two bad-weather games as a rookie last year. One game in Cleveland featured a 30-degree temperature and 32-mph winds. Another in Buffalo against the Giants had 25-mph winds. Edwards and the Bills lost both.

"He's done pretty well," Jauron said. "He's very young in it obviously. He's very young in this league, but I have a lot of faith in this guy, and he's done fine in those types of games."

St. Louis snags Grant - The St. Louis Rams this week signed rookie linebacker Larry Grant off the 49ers' practice squad. Grant, who played at Foothill High School as a freshman and a senior, was a seventh-round draft pick out of Ohio State.

The 49ers initially envisioned Grant as a "ted" linebacker, the position that Takeo Spikes plays. At the end of the offseason, however, they moved him to the "mike" linebacker spot behind Patrick Willis. The 49ers have not yet filled the opening on their practice squad.

Et cetera - Cornerback Nate Clements likely will be the 49ers' punt returner Sunday. Regular returner Allen Rossum already has been ruled out for the game after turning his ankle against Dallas. Arnaz Battle is coming back from a foot injury and will be limited in practice this week.

Clements, meanwhile, returned 65 punts in six seasons with the Bills and has been a sporadic return man since joining the 49ers last year. Tight end Delanie Walker will handle kick returns.

• Receiver Josh Morgan is trying to work his way back from a groin injury and will be limited in practice this week. Leading tackler Willis missed Wednesday's practice because of an ankle injury, the second consecutive Wednesday session he has missed.

• Wide receiver Isaac Bruce is practicing this week with nine staples in the back of his head, the result of a laceration he suffered early in last Sunday's game against the CowboysDallas.