Matthew Wright injury: New update emerges on 49ers backup kicker

In the San Francisco 49ers’ 36-24 win over the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday evening, 49ers kicker Matthew Wright suffered an apparent shoulder injury. On Friday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter provided an update on Wright’s condition.

“MRI on 49ers kicker Matthew Wright’s shoulder came back negative today, and he now is expected to be able to kick next week vs. the Chiefs, per source,” Schefter wrote on X. “This means San Francisco is not expected to now have to use three kickers in three games.”

Wright was the second 49ers kicker to suffer an injury attempting to make a tackle on a kick return this week. In the 49ers’ loss to Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, kicker Jake Moody left the game with an ankle injury on a nearly identical play.

In turn, the 49ers held tryouts and signed Wright to a one-year deal on Tuesday. Wright has also had stints in the NFL with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Kansas City Chiefs and Carolina Panthers.

After the game on Thursday, a reporter asked 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan if he challenges his kickers to make tackles on special teams plays. Shanahan didn’t hesitate to set the record straight.

“Hell no. I don’t. I don’t know how I feel about that anymore,” Shanahan said. “When they break through and they’re the only line left, I would never be the coach that says, ‘Just let them score.’ But dang, that’s two weeks in a row. … That was huge for him to stop them — I mean, it looked like they could have scored if he wasn’t there. So I just hope he’s alright.”

Wright stepped up under short notice. In the win, he connected on all three of his field-goal attempts, including one 41 yards. Additionally, Wright made all three of his extra-point attempts.

Since the 49ers’ game was on Thursday, Wright will have extra time to recover from his injury. The 49ers won’t play against until Oct. 20 when they square off against Kansas City Chiefs at 4:25 p.m. ET. The game will air live on FOX.