Tonges on IR, Stribling Out: San Francisco's Skill Depth Takes a Week 1 Hit

Jake Tonges landed on injured reserve after the Melbourne game, and De'Zhaun Stribling is listed out. That's the top tight end and a receiver gone before the 49ers have played a meaningful home snap. Brayden Willis moves up to the TE2 role behind whoever the front office can piece together at the top of that depth chart.

The timing is rough because Tonges was a genuine contributor last season — 366 yards and five touchdowns in 12 games — and the tight end room behind him is thin. Willis and Khalil Dinkins are the names on the depth chart. Kyle Juszczyk is also listed questionable, which means the receiving options out of the backfield are narrower than anyone would like heading into Week 2.

The front office has been active on the transaction wire since May, so they know how to move. The question is what's available and how quickly a new piece can learn the offense. Shanahan's system has a learning curve; plug-ins don't always plug in cleanly.

Nothing here changes the season outlook on its own. But the 49ers spent the offseason adding Mike Evans precisely because the skill-position depth was already a concern after Kittle's Achilles and the Aiyuk situation. Now the margin got a little thinner before the schedule gets harder.