Yetur

Gross-Matos

Gross-Matos has been sidelined since Week 5 with a knee injury that required a stint on injured reserve. Now a situational player for the San Francisco defense, Gross-Matos should return to a modest role in clear passing situations for a 49ers team looking to make a second half push for the playoffs.

Gross-Matos suffered a knee injury the team’s Week 4 win over the Patriots and did not suit up in Week 5 against the Cardinals. The veteran pass rusher has played in three games for the Nines this season, totaling just one tackle while failing to record a sack. Depending on how his recovery goes, Gross-Matos could return anytime between early-November to early-December.

In addition to Floyd, defensive tackle Yetur Gross-Matos is also believed to have suffered a sprained knee. Both players will undergo MRIs on Saturday to confirm their injuries and their severity. Floyd signed a one-year contract with the 49ers this offseason and is coming off a 10.5-sack year with the Bills, which tied his career high. We’ll see if either player’s absence stretches into the regular season. The 49ers open the year on September 9 against the Jets.

The four-year veteran appeared in 55 games for the Panthers, starting 23 of his final 29 games with the team. He was placed on injured reserve prior to Week 8 in 2023 but returned for the final six games to play an integral role for the defense. He should initially serve as a sub-package player for the stout San Francisco defense.

Gross-Matos had been one of the few bright spots on the Carolina defense, recording 2.5 sacks already, just one off his career-high. However, he injured his hamstring in Week 7 and head coach Frank Reich told reporters that “It wasn’t just a little strain, it was pretty significant.” Gross-Matos will now have four weeks to try and heal up.

That leaves eight players still on the team’s COVID list. The rookie totaled 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble across 205 snaps (26%) prior to being placed there. He’ll likely be active for Week 14 against the Broncos.

Gross-Matos is the first player the Panthers have put on the list since cornerback Rasul Douglas on October 23. He made two tackles on 41 defensive snaps during Sunday’s loss in Minnesota. He has a chance to return before Carolina’s next game in Week 14 against the Broncos.

Gross-Matos is a lengthy edge rusher who has had some flashes of quality play as a second-round rookie. The Panthers have been better than expected but are still missing edge rushing talent right now. Gross-Matos going to injured reserve further complicates that problem. He looks like a building block long term after creating eight pressures on only 47 pass-rushing snaps.

Gross-Matos (6’5/266) took home back-to-back Reid-Robinson Awards for Penn State’s most outstanding defensive lineman in his final two years with the program, compiling 34.5 tackles for loss and 17.5 sacks from 2018 on. His 92nd-percentile arm length (34 7/8") and first-step explosion allow him to get upfield in a hurry as a pass rusher from either the edge or the interior, but he admittedly needs more tackle-shedding moves and raw strength to be a high-impact starter in the NFL. Still, Gross-Matos projects as an all-around player at the next level due to his ideal length and violence as a one-trick pony until he matures and develops in due time. Gross-Matos joins DT Derrick Brown as the Panthers’ top two picks in 2020. Carolina knows its defense needed work. Gross-Matos will team with 2019 first-rounder Brian Burns and free-agent pickup Stephen Weatherly off the edge.

Gross-Matos (6’5/266) took home back-to-back Reid-Robinson Awards for Penn State’s most outstanding defensive lineman in his final two years with the program, compiling 34.5 tackles for loss and 17.5 sacks from 2018 on. His 92nd-percentile arm length (34 7/8") and first-step explosion allow him to get upfield in a hurry as a pass rusher from either the edge or the interior, but he admittedly needs more tackle-shedding moves and raw strength to be a high-impact starter in the NFL. Still, Gross-Matos projects as an all-around player at the next level due to his ideal length and violence as a one-trick pony until he matures and develops in due time. Gross-Matos joins DT Derrick Brown as the Panthers’ top two picks in 2020. Carolina knows its defense needed work. Gross-Matos will team with 2019 first-rounder Brian Burns and free-agent pickup Stephen Weatherly off the edge.