49ers' Jake Tonges has MCL damage; Shanahan says 'it wasn't good'
San Francisco's No. 2 tight end left the Melbourne opener with a knee injury, and the coach's postgame update pointed to a meaningful absence
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The 49ers came out of their Melbourne opener with a serious new question at tight end. Jake Tonges was carted off in the second quarter with a knee injury, and Kyle Shanahan's postgame description of the damage was anything but encouraging.
Eric Branch (@Eric_Branch): De'Zhaun Stribling's Achilles is intact; Jake Tonges has severe knee injury. https://www.sfchronicle.com/sports/49ers/article/49ers-rookie-wr-de-zhaun-stribling-exits-game-22426635.php?utm_campaign=CMS%20Sharing%20Tools%20(Premium)&utm_source=t.co&utm_medium=referral #49ers
Shanahan told reporters the injury was not to the ACL but to the MCL, and that the full picture was still developing. "It wasn't good. It's not an ACL, it's the MCL, I believe, but there's some issues with it that we've got to see how it is," he said. "There's a little more information to it, but we don't know yet."
The 49ers will not have a complete diagnosis until the team is back from Australia and can put Tonges through a full set of tests, but the tone of the update suggested the medical staff is bracing for him to miss significant time.
Tonges, 27, has been with San Francisco since 2023. He spent his first year on the practice squad and worked mostly on special teams in 2024 before taking on a much larger offensive role in 2025, when injuries to George Kittle opened snaps. He finished last season with 34 catches for 293 yards and five touchdowns, and he signed a two-year, $8 million contract this offseason, a sign of how much the team valued him in the passing game.
The timing is awkward. Kittle had been on the injury report during the week before the opener and was cleared in time to play, and the 49ers now have to sort out their tight end depth behind him while Tonges awaits a firm timeline.