San Francisco 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga participated fully in practice for the first time since tearing a ligament in his knee last November and could be ready to return to the game this week.
Hufanga injured his ACL in a win against Tampa Bay on November 19 last season and missed the rest of that year. He was on the physically unable to perform list during training camp but was activated when the Niners cut the roster to 53 players on August 27.
He had limited practice in the past two weeks and missed the first two games of the season. Now, he is expected to make his season debut on Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams, provided there are no setbacks this week, giving the Niners a much-needed boost.
“You always miss Huf out there,” coach Kyle Shanahan said Wednesday. “The big-play capability, how well he communicates, flying sideline to sideline. We’re going to be pumped. He should get back this week if everything goes right. We’ve missed him.”
Hufanga was drafted in the fifth round by San Francisco in 2021 and mainly played on special teams at first before becoming part of the defense late in his rookie season.
He then became an All-Pro in his second year and was performing well again last year before his injury, recording three interceptions and 52 tackles.
The defense struggled a bit after his injury, giving up 4.4 more points per game and 0.24 more yards per play after Hufanga went down.
“We missed him a lot,” All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner said. “Even though he’s a young player, the leadership ability in that room is big time. The voice that he has in the back end calling out the checks and alerting guys, alerting even myself is huge for me. It takes a lot off my plate. So happy to have him back out there.”
