Jerick McKinnon
49ers RB Jerick McKinnon has not played for the 49ers since signing a major free-agent deal because of a torn ACL and resulting complications during his rehab. McKinnon was working his way back to the field last year, but his knee never felt right and he ended up needing another surgery to shave off a bone spur and add a bone marrow graft. He re-did his contract this offseason, cutting his base salary down to $910,000 for one last shot to play for the 49ers. Now he’s going to Houston to test his knee with Redskins RB Adrian Peterson and his legendary offseason workouts.
“I feel like it’s my last test to really see how it feels,” McKinnon said via the Athletic’s Matt Barrows. “There’s a lot of hard work going on down there. That’s really where I’m going to amp it up as hard as I can and see where it goes.”
49ers
Because the 49ers have not been shy about investing first-round picks in their defensive line, San Francisco has options after deciding to trade DE DeForest Buckner to the Colts instead of giving him a massive extension. But it doesn’t make replacing Buckner any more of a sure thing, which 49ers DE Nick Bosa, last year’s No. 2 overall pick and a potential star talent in his own right, pointed out.
“Buck was definitely one of my best friends on the team and seeing him go is obviously bittersweet,” Bosa said via ESPN’s Nick Wagoner. “He got a pretty good contract and he deserves it but just losing him as a leader, we’re going to have to really figure out how to step up and fill that void because he was the third-down D-line play-caller, he was the hype speech guy, he was everything. And I think he played with the best effort on the D-line, which really shows on tape when you see somebody that big sprinting to the ball every play and making those tackles downfield and obviously his pass-rush ability, we’re gonna have to step it up for him.”
- The 49ers gave fifth-round OL Colton McKivitz one of the 15-20 “gold helmet” designations they award each year to players who fulfill exemplary criteria, including character and football intelligence. (Barrows)
Cowboys
“Anybody who I run into who’s been franchise tagged, we have one on our team this year in Anthony Harris, I believe the franchise tag can be your friend,” Cousins said on ESPN on Thursday night. “I don’t think it’s something to be disappointed with. I think it enables you to be well compensated, and deservedly so, for the upcoming season. Then, I always say the cream will rise to the top. If you’re good enough, the cream’s going to rise to the top, and you’re going to get compensated the way you want to. Sometimes it doesn’t happen as quickly as you would like, but if you deserve it, and you’ve earned it, it’s going to happen. So you’ve just got to stay the course and stay patient. Certainly in my journey, it all worked out. I wouldn’t go back and change a thing. So my message to Dak, when I saw him midseason last year, was, ‘Hey, whatever happens, don’t be afraid of the tag. It can be your friend, and you can use it to your advantage.’”
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