The 49ers won’t have a key starter in the secondary today against the New England Patriots.
Talanoa Hufanga officially is inactive due to an ankle injury he suffered in practice on Thursday. Hufanga tested the ankle on the field before the game but the team trainers did not clear him to play.
Hufanga made his season debut last week in the 49ers’ 27-24 loss to the Rams after missing the first two weeks of the season with an ACL injury he suffered in 2023. He played pretty well last week, as he recorded 7 tackles. But he also gave up a 32-yard catch, so he’s still rusty.
In his place, the 49ers most likely will start George Odum who started the first two games and allowed a perfect passer rating of 158.3 when targeted. He infamously gave up a 97-yard touchdown catch to Justin Jefferson in Minnesota.
Odum is a 30-year-old special teams ace who historically has struggled playing safety. If he continues to struggle today, the 49ers could bench him and turn to rookie Malik Mustapha. Through three weeks, Mustapha has played 36 defensive snaps, he has recorded 4 tackles, he has been targeted once and he has not given up a catch.
It seems obvious that Mustapha is the better option to start because he’s young and promising as opposed to Odum who’s old. But head coach Kyle Shanahan plays young players only if he absolutely has to. He’d prefer to play veterans who know the scheme than young players who have talent.
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