The 49ers have waived injured RB Thomas Clayton and have signed FB Bill Rentmeester.
Clayton was injured in Friday's game against the Broncos. The reports say that he sustained a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee. After two years of impressive presason campaigns, Clayton finally made the team roster for the last two games of 2008. He did not play in those games.
It's sad to see Clayton's promising career come to this, but it was hard to keep him when the running back situation was starting to get cluttered.
Matt Maiocco explains the chances of Clayton coming back to the 49ers:
Any team can claim Clayton, but that seems unlikely because he's out for the season. If he goes unclaimed, Clayton automatically reverts back to the 49ers and will go on injured reserve. If the 49ers had just placed Clayton on injured reserve without the "waived" designation, he still would have counted against the team's 80-man limit until the first cutdown day (Sept. 5).
FB Bill Rentmeester will wear #43. Rentmeester (6-0, 254) was originally signed as an undrafted free agent on May 1, 2009 by the San Diego Chargers. He recently was released on August 5. He played his college ball in Wisconsin.
This move comes on the day when the 49ers announced the length of FB Zak Keasey's forearm injury. Keasey's broken forearm will sideline him for 8-10 weeks.
Speaking of injured players, LB Patrick Willis and TE Delanie Walker are expected to join the team on the practice field, according to Mike Singletary.
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