49ers left tackle Joe Staley spent an extra night in Philadelphia after the team’s Week Eight loss to the Eagles because he was undergoing evaluation for an eye injury suffered when he was blocked by Eagle defensive tackle Fletcher Cox during an interception return.
Staley was diagnosed with a fractured orbital bone and missed last Sunday’s loss to the Cardinals, but he appears set to return to action this week. Staley was a full participant in practice on Friday and was not given a designation on the team’s final injury report ahead of this weekend’s game against the Giants.
The team hasn’t confirmed that Staley will be in the lineup, so they could wait through the bye week before returning Staley to action. Whenever they do deem him ready to play, his presence could be a factor in deciding when to give Jimmy Garoppolo his first shot at quarterback as having Staley on hand should help on the pass protection front.
Tight end George Kittle and defensive end Aaron Lynch will not play for the 49ers, who also listed rookie defensive lineman Solomon Thomas as questionable after he missed last week’s game.