- Mike Nolan said he expects all his players to be ready for practice when the 49ers begin preparing for the regular-season opener next Monday. A couple of players, however, appear to be bigger longshots than others.
- Adam Snyder has a high-ankle sprain, an injury that usually takes weeks to heal. If he is slow to recover, the 49ers might be tempted to move Tony Wragge to left guard.
- Bryant Johnson also is making a slow recovery from his Aug. 4 hamstring pull. Ashley Lelie (calf) and Arnaz Battle (hamstring) participated in some individual drills today but Johnson remained out. There's a possibility that Lelie and Battle could play in the preseason finale Friday. Nolan said there might have to be a bit of a rotation at receiver, especially early in the season. That's not ideal, but it's not as big a deal in Mike Martz's system where the routes are so precise. That is, there is less room for individual differences from one receiver to the next.
- Johnson joins Snyder, Jonas Jennings (knuckle) and Allen Rossum (back) as players who are definitely out Friday. With Rossum out, it raises the question as to who will return kicks and punts. Robert Ortiz has been the back-up punt returner but Nolan said that if Battle is healthy, he could get a couple of opportunities. At kick returner, Delanie Walker has done it in the past, and Josh Morgan has done it in practice.
-- Matt Barrows
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