The 49ers have made decisions -- sort of -- on outside linebacker Darius Fleming and running back Jewel Hampton, both of whom were injured at the start of training camp.
Hampton will rejoin practice today. The team has a three-week window to place him on the active roster. If that doesn't happen, he will stay on the the reserve/non-football injury list for the rest of the season. Because the 49ers have an abundance of runners this year -- Brandon Jacobs, for example, has yet to play a snap -- it's very hard to see Hampton being activated unless there is a rash of injuries at the position.
Fleming, meanwhile, will remain on the physically unable to perform list for the rest of the season. He suffered a torn ACL in the first practice of the year in May. And while he is ahead of schedule in his recovery, the 49ers also have some depth at the outside linebacker position and don't want to bring Fleming back too early. Both he and fellow outside-linebacker draft pick Cam Johnson likely will be de facto rookies next season. Johnson is a member of the practice squad but is recovering from his own knee injury.
Fleming was a fifth-round pick out of Notre Dame. Hampton was an undrafted free agent who played at Iowa before transferring to Southern Illinois where he ran for 1,121 yards and 17 touchdowns last year. Both players have rehabilitated with the 49ers and attended practices throughout the offseason and regular season.
-- Matt Barrows
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