49ers’ Garoppolo misses second straight game

Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo will miss his second straight start with a sprained ankle for the San Francisco 49ers, clearing the way for Nick Mullens to make another start.

Garoppolo got hurt two weeks ago in a win against the New York Jets and hasn’t practised since then. The Niners had held out hope he could get on the practice field Friday, but they decided to hold him out and listed him as out for the game.

“If Jimmy could have played this week, he would have,” coach Kyle Shanahan said.

The Niners will also be without starting running back Raheem Mostert (knee), tight end Jordan Reed (knee), defensive end Dee Ford (back), cornerback Emmanuel Moseley (concussion), linebacker Dre Greenlaw (quadriceps) and cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon (hamstring) against the Eagles on Sunday night.

San Francisco will be getting some key pieces back this week with All-Pro tight end George Kittle set to return after missing two games with a knee injury and No. 1 receiver Deebo Samuel set to make his 2020 debut after breaking his foot during the off-season.

Kittle is one of the most important pieces to San Francisco’s offence as both a dominating run blocker and the team’s biggest threat in the passing game.

His 216 catches for 2,945 yards are the most ever for a tight end in his first three NFL seasons.

Samuel caught 57 passes for 802 yards and three TDs as a rookie last season and also made big contributions in the running game. He had 14 carries for 159 yards and three scores.

“It adds some excitement. You can get the ball into those guys’ hands,” Mullens said.