The San Francisco 49ers are incredibly thin on personnel but oddly don’t seem to see the desperation on their defensive line as they let a depth piece get swooped up by the Carolina Panthers on Tuesday.

According to Joe Person of The Athletic, the Panthers signed Trevis Gipson off the 49ers practice squad following Gipson’s fourth elevation on Sunday that San Francisco declined to sign him to the 53-man roster thereafter.

That would’ve been necessary to retain Gipson, and it was a bit surprising to see a team in dire need of pass rushers let one go. Nick Bosa is done for the year with a torn ACL. Yetur Gross-Matos is out. Defensive end Bryce Huff hurt his hamstring in Week 7 and was out against the Houston Texans. He’s expected to be out another week. Then Sam Okuayinonu got hurt in the fourth quarter of last Sunday’s loss and is day-to-day with an ankle injury.

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That plainly leaves San Francisco with not much option at pass rusher outside of Robert Beal, who played 35 snaps on Sunday, and Mykel Williams, who had 53 snaps. Gipson’s playing time wasn’t insignificant; he played 39 snaps for the Niners in Week 7. Now, he had one tackle and one pressure.

But quite frankly, Gipson is a warm body, and San Francisco seems to be in need of those. It’s not the biggest loss in terms of talent, and maybe that’s the takeaway of a standard the 49ers are keeping stringent despite the lack of personnel depth.

Robert Saleh can be the world’s biggest genius, but he can’t scheme up human beings, and there’s no rotation to be had on this current defensive line. The question is whether that indicates a smaller set of moves, or perhaps one big splash.

The trade deadline is Nov. 4, but San Francisco knows what its needs are. That unfortunately leaves them with little leverage entering negotiations with other teams, but it also gives them a streamlined approach to the market.

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Or they may sign one that they worked out on Tuesday, as Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 reported that the team had Clelin Ferrell, Kingsley Jonathan, and Andrew Farmer in on Tuesday.

Ferrell would be a natural fit in a defensive system he’s familiar with, albeit under a different coordinator.

Gipson had ample opportunity in 39 snaps to prove it to head coach Kyle Shanahan, and the 49ers’ decision not to sign him to their 53-man roster should indicate a necessary move incoming on the defensive line.