San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Mike Evans was ruled out of the team's Week 3 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals due to a rib injury. Evans went down during the second quarter after taking a hard hit. He was carted to the locker room and later ruled out.
Before going down Evans had already made three catches for 34 yards in the game. He was dealing with a hip injury earlier in the season and was listed as questionable before kickoff. Evans did not participate in practice on Wednesday or Thursday due to the issue.
He was limited during Friday's practice session before the game.
This marks the first season that Evans has played with the 49ers. Evans had previously been drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first round of the NFL draft. His only season with fewer than 1,000 receiving yards was in 2025 when he played just eight games due to a combination of injuries.
He is tied with Hall of Famer Jerry Rice for the most consecutive seasons with at least 1,000 receiving yards. The veteran entered Sunday leading San Francisco with 103 receiving yards through two games.
The 49ers are already managing a significant number of injuries this season.
Wide receivers Christian Kirk; Ricky Pearsall; De'Zhaun Stribling; and Demarcus Robinson are currently on injured reserve. Brandon Aiyuk's situation with the team remains unresolved as well. Nick Bosa also missed Sunday's game with a calf injury suffered during practice last week.
Tackle Trent Williams later left the game with a stinger. He was taken from the field on a cart and later returned to the sideline. He did not return to the game.
San Francisco still defeated Arizona 36-30 to improve to 3-0. Brock Purdy threw four touchdown passes in the victory. Evans' absence leaves the team's receiving corps in a difficult spot if the rib injury keeps him out beyond Week 3.
