49ers notebook: Damontre Moore done for the season with fractured forearm

The 49ers lost another reserve defensive end to injury.

Damontre Moore, who was signed two weeks ago to replace backup Ronald Blair III after going down with an ACL tear, fractured his forearm during the third quarter of Sunday’s blowout victory over the Green Bay Packers.

Moore is expected to have surgery this week and be placed on season-ending injured reserve, coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday.

“I know he’s really down because he wanted to be a part of us for the rest of the year,” Shanahan said.

Moore signed with San Francisco in the spring and impressed during the preseason with 2 1/2 sacks, but he didn’t make the team because the 49ers were loaded at the position. He was among the first players San Francisco called for tryout after Blair went down late in the Nov. 11 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

Bringing Moore back immediately paid off. In his first game, he forced a key fumble late in the Nov. 17 comeback victory over the Arizona Cardinals. He played 34 snaps (42 percent) Sunday against the Packers while 49ers defensive end Dee Ford nursed a hamstring injury.

Moore sustained his injury while chasing Aaron Rodgers during a third-down scramble in the red zone early in the second half. He wound up playing through the it and didn’t report it to trainers until after Shanahan had his post-game press conference.

“It was just really cool how he played these two weeks. It was exactly like the preseason, putting everything on the line, doing everything he could to earn a job,” Shanahan said. “... I can’t tell you how impressed we were that we didn’t know he had a broken forearm until after my press conference yesterday.”

The 49ers are likely to promote defensive end Jeremiah Valoaga from the practice squad, Shanahan said.

Valoaga, 25, appeared in nine games for the Detroit Lions in 2017 and recorded a sack and five tackles. He spent last season on the Miami Dolphins practice squad before signing with San Francisco and leading the team with 4 1/2 sacks in the preseason.

Ford, meanwhile, has a chance at returning this week in time for the trip to play the Baltimore Ravens, though his status remains up in the air. The 49ers in the meantime will continue to rely on Nick Bosa, Arik Armstead and Solomon Thomas to get the majority of playing time at defensive end with Moore out and Ford working back into the mix.

Injury updates on Breida, Gould, Staley

Like Ford, left tackle Joe Staley (finger), running back Matt Breida (ankle) and kicker Robbie Gould (quadriceps) are considered day-to-day and could return to the lineup Sunday in Baltimore.

Staley had his surgically repaired right finger re-checked Monday after being listed as a “limited” participant during Friday’s practice. Shanahan is holding out hope Staley can return Sunday after missing the past two games. If not, it’s likely Daniel Brunskill would get the start at left tackle and not rookie Justin Skule, who was replaced by Brunskill in the second quarter of the Packers game.

“That’s the way the tape looked and the way they finished that game,” Shanahan said. “But both of those guys have played well for us. So we’ll base it off the three days of practice.”

Shanahan also noted Skule is “banged up” while dealing with wear and tear from the season, which may have factored into his poor performance Sunday night when he allowed a sack and was called for holding before getting replaced. The 49ers scored on their last five of their six possessions after the switch.

Breida has missed the past two games to rest his recurring ankle injury and has spent the open portion of recent practices working on a stationary bike. Against the Packers, San Francisco had its best rushing performance since Oct. 27 against the Panthers by averaging 5.1 yards per carry en route to 112 yards.

Gould was seen kicking field goals on the Levi’s Stadium field before Sunday’s game. Shanahan sounded optimistic Gould could return Sunday after missing the past three weeks.

“I think he’s real close,” Shanahan said. “Like I said last week, if it was probably another position he would have (played). I know Robbie wants to go and we’ll be smart with that and make sure that he is 100 percent. I think he’s getting very close to there and he was to that last week. We’ll see how he is here on Wednesday.”

Witherspoon still working

Cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon received his most extensive playing time Sunday since his Week 3 foot sprain. He was on the field for 49 snaps (61 percent) after he was expected to play roughly four series, Shanahan said.

Shanahan expects Witherspoon to continue working before retaining his starting job when he’s fully healthy and in top form. Witherspoon received more playing time than foreseen because Emmanuel Moseley had been dealing with an ankle sprain from the Arizona game two weeks ago.

“I was impressed with him,” Shanahan said of Witherspoon. “He’s still not all the way back yet, which we understand that. It takes some time, especially as a corner. But when he got in there, it was nice that he could play a little bit more and I think he’s close to getting fully back.”

Witherspoon allowed just one catch on five targets. He was expected to be back from his foot injury in late October but dealt with a quadriceps injury that slowed his return.

▪ Defensive tackle Jullian Taylor suffered a jaw contusion late in the fourth quarter and will have more testing this week. Right guard Mike Person sustained a stinger but isn’t expected to miss time.

This story was originally published November 25, 2019 at 3:15 PM.