The Monday after the San Francisco 49ers walloped the Arizona Cardinals in Week 11, head coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed to reporters linebacker Tatum Bethune suffered a high-ankle sprain in the victory and would miss some time, perhaps a couple of weeks at least.
On the positive side, the second-year pro who has admirably filled in for the injured Fred Warner isn't likely to land on injured reserve.
Yet Bethune's injury will have a ripple effect that'll impact the Niners defense in more ways than one.
For starters, Bethune has been an above-average run defender, the kind of player San Francisco has sorely needed in recent years to shore up an otherwise shoddy ground defense.