Veteran Ian Williams was the latest 49ers player Friday to be placed on the physically-unable-to-perform or non-football injury list.
Next week when linebacker NaVorro Bowman reports, he will also be added to the PUP list.
Bowman is expected to open the season on the PUP list, as the 49ers are not going to take any chances in his rehab from the severe knee injury he sustained in the NFC Championship game.
Meanwhile, Williams expects to come off the list at some point in training camp and be available for the start of the regular season. He underwent four surgeries on his lower left leg since sustaining the injury on a block from Seattle guard J.R. Sweezy. The block, which was legal at the time, has since been outlawed.
[RELATED: 49ers place Williams on active/PUP list]
“I want to make sure I’m close to 100 (percent) because my position is very different than others," Williams said at the conclusion of the 49ers' offseason program.
“I have two guys, at times, pushing on me, so I have different angles I got to hold 700 pounds sometimes. So I want to make sure my ankle is as close to 100 as possible.”
Each of the nine players placed on the NFI or PUP lists count toward the 90-player roster limit. They can be cleared and come off those lists at any time before the start of the regular season.
Only if they begin the season on either of those lists do they not count against the 53-player limit. But the only way a player can begin the season on NFI or PUP, which would require them to miss the at least the first six weeks of the regular season, is if the team declares them on those lists upon reporting to training camp.
[RELATED: Lattimore among eight 49ers on NFI or PUP lists]
--The 49ers took no chances with running back Marcus Lattimore, who is coming back from a severe knee injury during the 2012 season at South Carolina. His hamstring kept him from going all-out during the offseason program, so the 49ers want to make sure through conditioning that he is 100-percent ready to practice before removing him from the NFI list.
--Center Marcus Martin and wide receiver Bruce Ellington were also placed on the NFI list. Both players participated in the 49ers’ offseason program but sustained injuries while working out on their own. Neither injury is believed to be serious. The 49ers do not disclose injury information beyond what the league requires during the regular season with injury reports.
--Outside linebacker Aaron Lynch and defensive lineman Kaleb Ramsey sustained injuries during the offseason program, therefore they were placed on the PUP list. Lynch should be available early in camp after sustaining a hamstring the week before the final minicamp. The condition of Ramsey’s injury is not known.
--Guard Brandon Thomas, cornerback Keith Reaser and fullback Trey Millard are coming off ACL tears and likely face “redshirt” seasons as rookies.
