The San Francisco 49ers saw their injury bug continue this past weekend, as safety Talanoa Hufanga has ligament damage his wrist and will miss about a month, according to head coach Kyle Shanahan.

The wrist injury is the latest setback in a tough year for Hufanga, who missed the start of the season while recovering from a torn ACL. He then missed Week 4 with an ankle injury sustained in his return, and will now be an Injured Reserve candidate as he nurses his most recent issue.

With Hufanga out, the 49ers will have to rely on their reserves at safety again, and will likely go to fourth-round rookie Malik Mustapha, as they did back in Week 4 when the former missed a week.

Mustapha began the season as the No. 3 safety behind Ji’Ayir Brown and George Odum, but seemed to eclipse the latter, as he cut into the snaps in Week 2 before playing 100 percent of the defensive snaps in Week 4.

It’s been an expected start to the year for the rookie, who has gone through a few mistakes, but also made a few highlight plays in coverage as well. Now, he’ll be tasked with a bigger role, and it could become more permanent with consistent play.

“I think communication is one of the hardest things, especially for a young guy coming in. I think he’s been getting better at that the more he’s been out there,” head coach Kyle Shanahan said of Mustapha ahead of Week 6. “I think, just his lack of not hesitating. I think you guys saw that a little in preseason, just with some of the hits he had. Especially, you saw a couple in that Tennessee game, from what I remember. And when he’s come in, he’s done the same stuff. I think he gets faster each week, just recognizing things and not breaking down and trying to run through his tackles.”

Defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen has seen the growth as well, pointing directly to the increase in playing time as the root cause for Mustapha’s development.

“I think his strides have come just because he has played a lot,” Sorensen said of Mustapha. “I mean, we’ve had a lot of guys play and I think it’s good that guys gain knowledge through getting their snaps. And for him it’s just being comfortable being out there. I think I’ve mentioned before, like with safeties, it’s that comfort to communicate and the feel of the game and the flow of the game and how it moves and how you have to be a leader back there behind our backers that you can communicate across the board and be tied in. And I think he’s done a good job with that.”

The safeties will be an important part of the picture for San Francisco, as the position group has underwhelmed as a whole this year, even with Hufanga in the fold.

Mustapha will work alongside Ji’Ayir Brown in Week 6, who suffered an ankle injury this past weekend and has been limited through the first two days of the week.

With the 49ers defense needing a spark, Mustapha could be the answer, and he marks yet another rookie from the 2024 class that have been thrust into a meaningful role to start the year.