Back in dominant form after a midseason slump, the 49ers did not escape their one-sided Thanksgiving win without another major injury. A week after losing Talanoa Hufanga to a torn ACL, San Francisco is likely to be without George Odum moving forward.
The veteran special-teamer left Thursday’s game after sustaining a biceps injury, and Kyle Shanahan said (via 49erswebzone.com’s David Bonilla) the All-Pro role player “most likely” suffered a tear. Odum, 30, is in his second season with the 49ers.
An MRI has since confirmed a tear, per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero, though with this a two- to four-month recovery, the possibility of Odum coming back late in the season remains open. The 49ers have a better injury outlook compared to 2022, when they used all eight of their IR activations during the regular season. An Odum return sounds doubtful, but the team could probably make it work roster-wise.
Odum left the game after DeeJay Dallas‘ muffed punt gave the 49ers possession in the second quarter. The 49ers may not feel this impact their secondary directly, but the depth is running thin at this position. Signed to a three-year, $5.7MM deal during the 2022 offseason, Odum has played only 37 defensive snaps this year. This comes after he logged 38 in 2022. But the 49ers are set to lose a top-tier special teams talent and a player with some starting experience on defense.
Coming to San Francisco from Indianapolis, Odum started seven games for the Colts in 2021. He has also collected two All-Pro honors for ST work, earning first-team acclaim in 2020 and second-team recognition after his first 49ers season. The former UDFA has 12 tackles this season.
The 49ers played their Week 12 game with three safeties — Odum and starters Tashaun Gipson and Ji’Ayir Brown. At least one roster move will come out of this latest injury setback. The team lost Jimmie Ward in free agency but added Brown in Round 3 of this year’s draft. While second-year UDFA Tayler Hawkins resides on San Francisco’s practice squad, the NFC West leaders may need to look outside the organization for a depth piece in the wake of Hufanga and Odum’s injuries.
Brown has played well but I doubt they wanted to have to start so soon.