The San Francisco 49ers always fall victim to the injury bug and 2025 is no different. The 49ers just received some crushing injury news that could affect their Week 7 matchup with the Atlanta Falcons. Just days after superstar tight end George Kittle was placed on IR with a hamstring injury, the Niners just lost another key piece in star quarterback Brock Purdy
NFL Network's Ian Rappoport reported that the Pro Bowl quarterback is unlikely to play in Week 2 against the Saints and is expected to miss 2-5 weeks with a "turf toe variant." While 2022's Mr Irrelevant is on the shelf, former first-rounder Mac Jones is in line to start for San Francisco, Kyle Shanahan said the team would "like to" add another quarterback—and one target makes more sense than the rest.
49ers QB Brock Purdy will miss 2-5 weeks with a form of turf toe. (via @rapsheet) pic.twitter.com/CcuyQngF6H
— NFL (@NFL) September 11, 2025
With trade rumors ongoing for Kirk Cousins, Terry Fontenot might have just found the perfect trade partner. At this point, the 37-year-old might only net the Dirty Birds a Day 3 pick in return, but it could present the Falcons with the opportunity to shed his salary and finally cut ties with their biggest distraction.
Kirk Cousins is a perfect fit in Kyle Shanahan's scheme
This wouldn't be the first time Kyle Shanahan pursued the four-time Pro Bowler. Shanahan was the offensive coordinator who helped draft Cousins in the fourth-round in 2012, and he attempted to trade the No. 2 overall pick for him back in 2017.
As for Atlanta, they have quickly admitted defeat after signing the Michigan State product. Fontenot and Raheem Morris signed Cousins to a four-year, $160 million deal in the spring of 2024 but struggles in just 14 starts as a Falcon—throwing for 18 touchdowns and a career-high 16 interceptions.
From there, the native Michigander was replaced by then-rookie Michael Penix Jr—who has quickly cemented himself as Atlanta's long-term answer under center. From there, the relationship between Cousins and the Falcons has been damaged, and a trade has long felt inevitable. Yet for some reason, despite trade interest flurrying, he stayed in the ATL through the offseason.
The numbers didn't look great, but he flashed in certain moments. Cousins threw for over 500 yards in a Thursday Night Football win over the Buccaneers and flashed a rapport with Drake London. However, he was also coming off of a torn Achilles in 2023 while playing through a shoulder injury suffered in Week 10.
Penix is just 1-3 as a starter, but after being selected No. 8 overall i 2024, he was always poised to take Cousins' job and emerge as the future at QB1. This situation now gives Atlanta the perfect storm to find him a new home where he could start again—but his $40 million cap hit in 2025 could complicate matters.
But even with that contract, there's zero doubt that "Kirko Chainz" could get the most out of a strong group of weapons in San Francisco headlined by Kittle, Ricky Pearsall, and Christian McCaffrey.
Falcons fans should be watching closely—because if Purdy is sidelined longer than expected, Cousins could end up facing his former team on Sunday Night Football in just a few weeks. A little injury chaos might just turn into a very interesting storyline for two franchises in search of a postseason return.