All NFL teams have until 1 p.m. PT on Tuesday to cut their rosters to 53 players, but 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan is stressing to each player being released that it’s not necessarily the end of their journey with the team.
“This is a big deal,” Shanahan said on a conference call Sunday, “and I always try to emphasize that. One of the things I always say is, they say this is the ‘final 53,’ but the final 53 has never been the final 53 in the history of football. This is just the final 53 on Tuesday at 1 p.m.”
Shanahan and the 49ers not only reinstated previously waived players to the practice squad, but eventually promoted them to the game-day active roster for the biggest games of the year.
“It’s constantly changing,” Shanahan said. “We select 53 players at the time and have 16 on the practice squad. It changes a lot throughout the year.”
The 49ers currently have several practice squad graduates in the starter lineup, including offensive lineman Colton McKivitz, wide receiver Jauan Jennings and linebacker Demetrius Flanigan-Fowles.
Wide receiver Chris Conley started on the practice squad in 2023 and ended up playing in eight regular season games, catching three of six passes for 69 yards. The ninth-year veteran played in all three postseason games, catching both passes for 35 yards and both first downs.
“The key is finding a way to stay in this league and get it done,” Shanahan said. “I always tell guys, when you’re faced with a challenge and you’re in the middle of a season and you have to acquire personnel, you want to acquire someone you know, not some random person you don’t know.”
The 49ers had 12 players on their game-day active roster for Super Bowl 53 but did not play in their season-opening Week 1 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Several were free agents, several were rookies and some were originally released on roster reduction day.
Along with Conley, several players were recalled to Santa Clara and re-enrolled during training camp this year, including defensive linemen Austin Bryant, Alex Barrett and T.Y. McGill and linebacker Curtis Robinson.
“We have some guys that don’t have a spot on the practice squad,” Shanahan said. “If they handle it the right way here and generally make it through camp, that means they can bring something to the table. So even if they don’t make it into those 16 guys, they should have an opportunity with us in the future.”
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