49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga suffered a knee injury during the team’s victory over the Buccaneers on Sunday, and it did not improve on Monday. On a Monday conference call, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed that Hufanga tore his ACL in the match. Fortunately, there was no other damage to the knee, so the hope is that he will be ready to go for the start of the 2024 season.

Hufanga was an All-Pro last season and was playing well again this season. He started all 10 games the 49ers have played and had 52 tackles and three interceptions in those contests. In his absence, Ji’Ayir Brown took over for him and had an interception in the end zone to kill a Bucs scoring chance.

The loss of Hufanga is a significant blow to the 49ers defense as he was one of their top performers this season. However, with Brown stepping up and playing well in his place, the team should still be able to maintain its defensive prowess.