The San Francisco 49ers made their roster moves official Saturday ahead of Sunday’s home opener against the Miami Dolphins at Levi’s Stadium. Rookie wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling landed on injured reserve, while defensive lineman Ogbo Okoronkwo was promoted to fill the vacated roster spot.
Stribling’s Injury and Recovery Timeline
Stribling underwent surgery Wednesday to repair a ruptured deltoid ligament in his ankle, an injury suffered during the team’s season opener. Coach Kyle Shanahan said the second-round pick is expected to miss roughly 10 weeks, with a possible return window in late November or early December. It’s a real setback for a player San Francisco expected to lean on offensively this season.
Okoronkwo’s Path to the 49ers’ Active Roster
Okoronkwo had already gotten a look in Week 1 as a standard practice squad elevation. He made the most of it. He logged three pressures on just 12 pass-rush snaps against the Los Angeles Rams, according to Pro Football Focus. That’s the second-most on the team behind defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa‘s five. It marked Okoronkwo’s best pressure total in a game since the final week of the 2024 season. It also helped San Francisco get to Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford 14 times overall.
That performance earned him a permanent spot. Okoronkwo, 31, was originally a fifth-round pick by the Los Angeles Rams back in 2018 out of Oklahoma. He made 46 appearances there and racked up 21 sacks over four seasons. His NFL journey since has taken him through the Rams, Houston Texans, Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles before landing in San Francisco this offseason. Across his eight-year career, he’s totaled 127 tackles and 17 sacks in 82 games.
Piñeiro’s Status for the 49ers
The corresponding roster move leaves an open spot on San Francisco’s practice squad. So far, the team hasn’t said how it plans to fill that spot. As a result, the 49ers didn’t elevate any additional players from the practice squad for Week 2.
Elsewhere, kicker Eddy Piñeiro is expected to handle kicking duties Sunday. An illness kept him out of practice much of the week. Because of that uncertainty, San Francisco worked out veteran kickers Greg Joseph and Younghoe Koo over the weekend as a precaution. In the end, the team signed neither.
NFL Hands Down Two Fines From Week 1
In addition, the NFL handed down two fines tied to Week 1. The league fined tight end Jake Tonges $9,266 for a leg-whip block on Rams defensive end Myles Garrett. That was the same play on which Tonges suffered a season-ending knee injury. Meanwhile, the NFL fined fullback Kyle Juszczyk $20,033 for an illegal use of his helmet. He committed the penalty on a play during the third quarter.
Kickoff against the Dolphins is set for 1:25 p.m. Pacific Time at Levi’s Stadium.
49ers Announce 2 Roster Moves Before Dolphins Game