{"id":106306,"date":"2025-10-12T01:58:50","date_gmt":"2025-10-12T01:58:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=106306"},"modified":"2025-10-12T01:58:50","modified_gmt":"2025-10-12T01:58:50","slug":"hard-hitting-safety-to-make-his-season-debut-with-the-49ers-on-sunday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=106306","title":{"rendered":"Hard-Hitting Safety to Make his Season Debut with the 49ers on Sunday"},"content":{"rendered":"
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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

The San Francisco 49ers are gearing up to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 6.<\/p>\n

The injury crisis continues to plague the franchise heading into another crucial week. Brock Purdy is still out, as is key offensive threat Ricky Pearsall. Mac Jones will likely have limited availability as well.<\/p>\n

But the possible return of one player in the secondary is a welcome addition, especially since he\u2019s been out since the end of last season.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
<\/canvas>\"Hard-Hitting<\/picture><\/figure>\n

Oct 27, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers safety Malik Mustapha (6) celebrates after Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott (not pictured) pass is incomplete during the third quarter at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images \/ Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Safety Malik Mustapha is questionable to return, but could feature in a limited capacity for Week 6.<\/p>\n

He was drafted in the fourth round in 2024 and showed impressive progress during his rookie year. Although he missed the start of the new season, he\u2019s expected to make significant strides in year two.<\/p>\n

Head coach Kyle Shanahan is extremely encouraged by his rehab progress, but he made it clear that he won\u2019t overwork him during this upcoming game in Tampa.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has worked as hard as any player who I\u2019ve seen in my life with attacking a rehab,” Shanahan told 49ers on NBC Sports Bay Area.<\/p>\n

“He should get unbelievable rewards for that. This has been his first week with us that he\u2019s been allowed to practice, but you can tell the work he\u2019s put in while being away because he\u2019s ready to go. He\u2019s conditioned.<\/p>\n

“He\u2019s prepped through all this stuff mentally and physically. He\u2019s had a hell of a week at practice, but we also have to be smart with him.<\/p>\n

“This is his first game getting out so we can\u2019t just throw him to the wolves and let him play like we know he\u2019s gonna play. We\u2019ll mix him in there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Under Robert Saleh, Mustapha should excel even further <\/strong><\/h2>\n
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<\/canvas>\"Hard-Hitting<\/picture><\/figure>\n

Oct 6, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers safety Malik Mustapha (6) gestures after defending a pass against the Arizona Cardinals during the second quarter at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images \/ Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Another exciting factor about Mustapha’s return is that he will be working under Robert Saleh.<\/p>\n

Mustapha was a bright spot in an otherwise bleak 2024 campaign, and now that a brutal long-term injury is behind him, it’s hopeful he can continue to grow.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis tape from last year is pretty impressive for a rookie,\u201d Saleh said on Tuesday. \u201cViolent, a violent, fast-trigger football player and I\u2019ve only had a couple days with him now but he\u2019s made of the right stuff. That\u2019s for damn sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s difficult for any player to bounce back from an ACL injury, but a gradual approach will smooth the process.<\/p>\n

Who Mustapha will replace once he\u2019s fully fit remains uncertain, but his return adds valuable depth to the defensive line.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This player\u2019s return carries extra significance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":106307,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-106306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"\nHard-Hitting Safety to Make his Season Debut with the 49ers on Sunday - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=106306\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hard-Hitting Safety to Make his Season Debut with the 49ers on Sunday - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"This player\u2019s return carries extra significance.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=106306\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-10-12T01:58:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/avtvip-13-2.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"MrThanh\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"MrThanh\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=106306\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=106306\",\"name\":\"Hard-Hitting Safety to Make his Season Debut with the 49ers on Sunday - 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