UPDATED 11:41 A.M.: Jaguars' running back James Robinson (heel) is officially active for today's game. Robinson missed the Jaguars' Week Nine win over the Bills, but did play in a limited role against the Colts last week.
The 49ers will be without their lead tailback Elijah Mitchell, who is officially inactive after having surgery on a fractured finger this week.
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After last week's comeback bid in Indianapolis came up just short, the Jacksonville Jaguars (2-7) return to TIAA Bank Field Sunday to begin a two-game homestand. Jacksonville will host the San Francisco 49ers (4-5) for just the fifth all-time meeting between the two sides. The 49ers are coming off a dominant, 31-10 win over their NFC West rivals, the Los Angeles Rams. San Francisco has won three straight over the Jaguars, including the most recent meeting in 2017 in California (44-33 in Week Fifteen of the 2017 season).
Not only would a win over the Jaguars bring the 49ers back to .500: it would catapult them right back into the thick of the NFC playoff picture. But they've never won in Jacksonville in those five previous meetings.
The big storyline coming into this game for both teams is injuries at running back. Jaguars' second-year sensation James Robinson (539 yards, six touchdowns) has been limited in practice the past two weeks as he continues to recover from a heel injury suffered Week Eight at Seattle. Robinson had just 12 carries for 57 yards and a touchdown against the Colts in the Jaguars' 23-17 loss; he had just four yards at halftime. His status is officially listed as Questionable for this game.
Meanwhile, rookie Elijah Mitchell (560 yards, three touchdowns) has emerged as the lead tailback for Kyle Shanahan's 49ers, but he suffered a broken finger against the Rams. His status is officially listed as Doubtful. Fellow running back JaMycal Hasty has already been ruled out. Jeff Wilson and rookie Tre Sermon are expected to see the bulk of the carries for the 49ers.
Jaguars rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence took a step back in his development against the Colts, fumbling away the would-be, game-tying possession with just minutes left on the clock. He finished 16-35 for 162 yards but was plagued by five drops. On the season, Lawrence has thrown for a 58-percent completion percentage and eight touchdowns to nine interceptions.
Lawrence's receiving corps did add the veteran John Brown to their ranks this week. A 1,000-yard receiver with both Arizona and Buffalo, Brown appeared in just two games for Denver this season with zero catches on one target. He had 33 receptions for 458 yards and three scores in 2020 with the Bills.
On the other side of the ball, the Jaguars defense has enjoyed back-to-back stellar performances. After Colts' superstar running back Jonathan Taylor racked up 93 yards on the first two Indianapolis drives of the game, Taylor was limited to just 23 yards of the rest of the way. Josh Allen and "Sacksonville" only had one sack of Carson Wentz but registered nine quarterback hits. That came on the heels of their historic, 9-6 upset win over the Buffalo Bills the week prior.
49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo didn't have to do a ton in his team's Monday Night win over Los Angeles. He was 15-19 for 182 yards with two touchdowns and zero interceptions. On the season, Garoppolo has thrown for a 66.4 completion percentage with ten touchdowns to five interceptions. The star of that Monday Night Football win was second-year, do-it-all offensive weapon, Deebo Samuel. Samuel had five catches for 97 yards and a touchdown and added another 36 yards and a touchdown on the ground. All-Pro tight end George Kittle also returned from injury for the 49ers, catching five passes for 50 yards and a touchdown.
The San Francisco defense tormented Matthew Stafford and the Rams all night long, picking off Stafford twice and sacking him twice. Nick Bosa, a former protégé of Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer when he was at Ohio State, has 8.0 sacks this season to lead the team.
Kick-off from TIAA Bank Field is scheduled for 1 p.m.
