49ers Bring Back Willis for Practice Squad | NFL News

0:00It's September 7th. I'm Corey with The Story, and this is NFL News Today, your AI-powered football briefing. The San Francisco 49ers are in Melbourne, Australia, gearing up for their NFL season opener against the Los Angeles Rams this Thursday night. While the game is still a few days away, teams are busy finalizing their rosters and practice squads. Just yesterday, the 49ers made a move to bring back tight-end Braden Willis. He was waved earlier, but remained in Australia with the team, and has now been signed to the practice squad. Willis, who is 26 years old, was originally drafted by the 49ers in the 7th round of the 2023 draft. He's been with the team for three seasons now, though he hasn't yet caught a pass in a regular season game. His contributions have mainly been on special teams, and as a blocker. He played in 23 games over his first three years, seeing action on special teams in a limited number of offensive snaps. He played seven games as a rookie, then 10, and 6 in his most recent season.

1:00The 49ers are considered one of the older teams in the league this year, but there's still a lot of excitement about what this group can do under. Coach Kyle Shanahan, last season they made it to the divisional round before falling to the Seattle Seahawks.