Who Should I Start? Ameer Abdullah or Deuce Vaughn

Monday, August 11, 8:41 PM

The San Francisco 49ers have placed running back Ameer Abdullah (ribs) on season-ending injured reserve, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Abdullah, who just joined the 49ers as a free agent on July 31, suffered a rib injury in a preseason-opening 30-9 loss to the Denver Broncos this past Saturday. While the 32-year-old was unlikely to make much of an impact this season (if any), it's another hit to San Francisco's depth in the backfield. The team is already set to go multiple weeks without injured Christian McCaffrey backups Isaac Guerendo (shoulder) and Jordan James (finger). The 49ers brought back Jeff Wilson Jr. in free agency on Sunday in the wake of Abdullah's injury to provide some much-needed healthy depth behind McCaffrey.

Tuesday, September 9, 6:50 PM

The Denver Broncos are signing free-agent running back Deuce Vaughn to their practice squad on Tuesday, sources tell Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports. Vaughn, a former All-American at Kansas State and a sixth-round pick by the Dallas Cowboys in 2023, will give Denver additional backfield depth behind J.K. Dobbins, rookie RJ Harvey, Tyler Badie, and Jaleel McLaughlin. The 5-foot-6, 176-pounder will be a long shot to make any noise in Denver this year or ever in the NFL, given his small stature. In his two seasons with the Cowboys over the last two years, he handled only 40 carries for 110 yards (2.8 yards per tote) with no touchdowns. Vaughn caught 10 of his 12 targets for 58 yards in the passing game. Dallas cut Vaughn from their roster at the end of training camp in late August.