49ers open practice window ahead of Week 5 – NBC Sports Bay Area & California

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The 49ers opened the practice window for defensive tackle Kalia Davis on Wednesday.

Davis, a sixth-round pick by the 49ers in the 2022 NFL Draft, suffered a knee injury in the season opener with the Tennessee Titans and required surgery. After the team initially reduced its roster to 53 players, he was placed on injured reserve.

Davis sat out his rookie season as he underwent physical therapy after his career at Central Florida ended with a torn ACL.

He recently appeared in three games and registered one sack. He did not play in the postseason after suffering a high ankle sprain late in the season and went on IR.

When a player like Davis is cleared to practice, the clock starts in a 21-day window. Davis can be added to the 53-man roster at any time during this period. However, if a roster move has not been made after 21 days, the team must place him on the active roster, keep him on injured reserve for the entire season, trade him, or release him.

The 49ers believe Davis has a chance to be a significant contributor as part of their defensive line rotation. When he suffered his injury in the preseason, coach Kyle Shanahan said Davis was playing well.

“I thought it was one of his best games,” Shanahan said of Davis in August. “It was really unfortunate. He played great the whole game. So he and we were really surprised that he had such a serious injury.

“It's a setback, but he had such a good camp, such a good game, he's in a good position to bounce back.”

Shanahan described Davis' injury as structural damage behind his kneecap.

When the 49ers drafted Davis, general manager John Lynch drew comparisons to DJ Jones, who signed a three-year, $30 million contract as a free agent with the Denver Broncos in the offseason.

“He’s a guy we see a lot of DJ Jones in,” Lynch said at the time. “He fits exactly what we want to be as a defensive tackle and we’ve grown very fond of him over time.”

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