NFL Spin Zone
Fansided

San Francisco 49ers place Kassim Osgood on IR, sign Desmond Bishop

By Brian Spaen

facebooktwitterreddit

Another San Francisco 49ers player is on the injured reserve list as the team looks to replace a standout rookie linebacker that’s been one of the franchises’ best stories this season.

The 49ers announced on Tuesday that it has placed wide receiver Kassim Osgood on the IR with a broken hand injury. A timetable for his return would be well past the final two games of the season, so the 49ers made the move to get more room on their roster.

Osgood hasn’t recorded a catch in the regular season but recorded two catches for 13 yards in the preseason. This is his second season with the 49ers and is a 12-year veteran overall. He has played in 177 games with 17 starts and has career totals of 45 catches, 766 yards, and five touchdowns. He’s largely known for his role on special teams, which he has recorded 19 tackles in 27 games with the 49ers.

Replacing Osgood is linebacker Desmond Bishop, who was signed with a one-year deal. Bishop will replace Chris Borland, the standout rookie linebacker who suffered an ankle injury against Seattle and will be receiving an MRI this week. The move was rumored last night when a 49ers fan tipped Niners Nation with a post from “49ers FANS FOR LIFE.”

The tweet had a picture of Bishop signing a 49ers football with the message: “Ay niner fans, my uncle Desmond Bishop just got signed as a LB on the 49ers!!!!!” The signing would give San Francisco room to work with if Borland isn’t ready to go against San Diego.

Borland has started in just eight games (played in all 14 so far), but he has a team-high 107 tackles (84 solo) and won an NFL award for Defensive Rookie of the Month in November. He is 33 tackles ahead of 49ers safety Antoine Bethea and is 12th nationally in tackles in the NFL. He has also recorded one sack, five pass deflections, and two picks.

Losing Borland’s production will obviously hurt and Bishop will have to step up in a big way. The former Arizona Cardinal linebacker spent most of his career with the Green Bay Packers. He totaled 165 total tackles, eight sacks, 10 pass deflections, and one pick in the 2010 and 2011 seasons, but has played in just four games since then.

Bishop didn’t play in any games with the Packers in his final season with them in 2012. He suffered a hamstring injury in the preseason and was placed on the IR. He tore his ACL with the Vikings the following year after four games. He never played a game with Arizona this season after being picked up twice and released on September 6th and again on December 1st. Bishop does have some connection with the Bay Area as he played with the University of California in his college years.

More from NFL Spin Zone