Drake Jackson will be sidelined for the 2024 campaign as he continues to recover from a knee injury. The third-year defensive end has been placed on the reserve/PUP list, per a team announcement. 
Players moved to the active/PUP list at the start of training camp are permitted to be activated and return to practice at any time. The reserve/PUP designation, however, guarantees players are out for the entire campaign, just like injured reserve at this point in the offseason. Jackson’s absence will be felt along the edge for San Francisco.
The former second-rounder was limited to eight games last season due to the injury, and an update from earlier this week noted he would be absent for at least the remainder of training camp. Today’s news is a notable step beyond that, and it means Jackson’s attention will need to turn to the 2025 campaign. That year doubles as the end of his rookie contract.
San Francisco has depended on Nick Bosa as an anchor on the edge, but Jackson was drafted to turn into a full-time starter to complement him. The latter posted three sacks as a rookie, matching that total in the first half of the 2023 campaign. He will face questions about his health and ability to produce on a consistent basis once he returns to full health.
The 49ers signed Leonard Floyd in free agency, and the veteran is positioned to operate as a first-teamer in 2024. San Francisco also added Yetur Gross-Matos on a two-year deal this offseason as part of a general strategy aimed at providing relative stability along the edge. Jackson would have been counted on to at least hold down a rotational role this season, so it will be interesting to see if a late-summer addition is made in the wake of his injury.
The team has over $52MM in cap space, flexibility which could allow for a move to be made in the near future. Anyone brought in at this point will face a short ramp-up period given how close Week 1 is, though. Jackson, 23, will need to make considerable progress in the coming months as he aims to return to the field next year. His designation created the roster spot needed for the 49ers’ signing of safety Tracy Walker to become official.
Can we interest you in an unused Haason Reddick?
They might have $52m in cap space, but they need most of that to rollover for next year to pay Purdy. They maybe have 10-15m to play with this year, and they typically save that for the trade deadline. Lots of depth signed at the edge, and I doubt Jackson was being counted on this year.
Yeah their cap situation looks pretty ugly next year with most of their starting secondary being FAs as well. Last year to get that Super Bowl before they have to retool/rebuild.