The San Francisco 49ers may be using the NFL's new IR rules to their advantage at final cuts.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan on Tuesday indicated veteran wide receiver Christian Kirk and veteran offensive lineman Vederian Lowe are both candidates to land on IR at final cuts instead of making the initial 53-man roster. Both players have been out since the early days of camp. Kirk is dealing with a calf strain while Lowe works back from a high ankle sprain.
“Yes, possibly," Shanahan said when asked if Kirk could start the season on IR. "We've got a number of guys like that, so we've got to see how that pans out here over the next few days.”
He confirmed Lowe was in that conversation as well.
It used to be a much tougher decision for clubs when it came to putting players on IR. Prior to the rule change in 2024 if a player went on IR before final cuts it ended their season. That would force teams to place an injured player on the 53-man roster and then place them on IR so they could backfill the vacated roster spot.
Teams under the new rules can place up to two players on IR at final cuts with a designation to return. That's where Kirk and Lowe would fall. They'd be eligible to return after four weeks and they wouldn't need to count against the 53-man roster at final cuts.
The deadline for rosters to be trimmed from 90 players to 53 is Aug. 30 at 3:00pm Pacific Time. At that point we'll find out how exactly the 49ers will have to make decisions on the futures of Lowe and Kirk.
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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Kyle Shanahan names 2 49ers veterans who could begin 2026 season on IR
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