Fresh off a Week 6 loss to the Buccaneers and a mounting injury crisis, the San Francisco 49ers wasted no time addressing roster depth. Just two hours after the Baltimore Ravens released a defensive “playmaker,” a promising reinforcement was suddenly very close to the Bay — at least verbally.

According to discussions not yet officially announced, San Francisco has reached a verbal agreement to add C.J. Gardner-Johnson — a versatile defensive back — pending a medical evaluation and roster mechanics. As of now, the team has not issued an official statement, and developments are ongoing. The move comes immediately on the heels of Baltimore parting ways with Gardner-Johnson only a week after signing him to their practice squad.

The Baltimore backdrop is straightforward: after adding a starting safety via trade, Gardner-Johnson’s defensive snap share shrank significantly, and both sides agreed to go their separate ways, per his representative. That opened the door for the 49ers to pursue a low-risk, high-upside addition — exactly when the roster needs a spark in the middle layers of the secondary. Gardner-Johnson is among the league’s most disruptive and adaptable defensive backs, having

led the NFL with six interceptions in 2022 while with the Philadelphia Eagles. He also played a key role in the Eagles’ recent Super Bowl victory, underscoring his big-stage experience.

This agreement arrives as the 49ers enter their most difficult stretch of the season — a time when an injury storm has started to sweep away key pillars on both sides of the ball.

On defense, Nick Bosa — the unit’s talisman — suffered an ACL tear in the loss to Tampa Bay (Week 6) and has been ruled out long-term, forcing a wholesale reconfiguration of the pass-rush plan. Soon after, the team lost

Fred Warner, its defensive captain, to a dislocated ankle with a fracture, a setback that could sideline him for the remainder of the year. George Kittle has been on Injured Reserve since the start of the season with a lingering hamstring issue, diminishing San Francisco’s control of the middle of the field.

On offense, Jauan Jennings continues to suit up while battling five fractured ribs and sprains in both ankles, per the medical staff’s post-game evaluation following the Tampa Bay loss — a testament to the locker room’s play-through-pain ethos. Quarterback

Brock Purdy is also managing toe and shoulder issues, which have limited his movement and downfield velocity over the past two weeks.

An internal team voice summed it up bluntly:

“No one in this locker room is 100% anymore,” the source said. “But we still show up every Sunday. That’s this team’s identity.”

From both a technical and psychological standpoint, the timing makes sense. After the 19–30 defeat in Week 6, San Francisco fell to 4–2 and showed leakage in the hook/curl and seam windows during the second half — the exact areas a seasoned nickel can close by reading a quarterback’s eyes, forcing early throws, and generating live-ball chances.

Gardner-Johnson’s ball-production profile is proven: those six 2022 interceptions came with high-end anticipation, urgent trigger downhill, and the flexibility to fold into the box against the run or rotate high to cap the top.

The schematic fit is also clean. The 49ers can deploy him as a nickel/STAR on slot receivers or tight ends, sprinkle in selective weak-side blitzes, and create more disguise between Cover-1 and Cover-3 shells. In gotta-have-it situations — third down, two-minute, red zone — he can slide into dime or big-nickel packages or rotate at safety, where his knack for baiting quick throws and attacking catch points can flip defensive series into momentum swings.

Ravens are releasing S Chauncey Gardner-Johnson after the safety’s agent Kevin Conner and Ravens officials came to “an amicable mutual decision”, per Conner. pic.twitter.com/TvRBnThr3o

— Adam Schetefr (@CCherry54488) October 15, 2025

Procedurally, the pact remains pending. The 49ers must complete medicals, decide how to process the transaction wire (straight to the 53-man roster or to the practice squad with game-day elevations), and then tailor his role week-to-week by opponent.

Until it’s officially confirmed, this remains a promising verbal agreement — a move that could re-inject the exact defensive DNA San Francisco has lacked: calculated aggression, diagnostic speed, and live-ball plays that often mark the boundary between a merely “good” team and a

true December contender.