SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers star receiver Mike Evans was unavailable for practice on Wednesday after leaving the previous game late in the first half because of tendinitis in his Achilles tendon.
Evans missed all three practices leading up to last Monday's 23-17 win against the Washington Commanders before coming up limping after a catch late in the first half. He didn't return to the game and his status for this week's game against Atlanta remains in question with coach Kyle Shanahan saying he didn't know how long the issue will impact Evans' ability to practice or play.
“We had to manage it last week and we’re managing it this week,” Shanahan said. "So, we’ll see how the rest of the year goes.”
Evans had three catches for 94 yards in the first half before leaving the game after a 16-yard catch late in the second quarter. Evans limped off the field and was seen trying to stretch out his lower leg in the tunnel before going back to the locker room.
He didn’t return for the second half and was ruled out for the game. The 49ers are already missing several receivers with Ricky Pearsall, De’Zhaun Stribling, Deebo Samuel, Demarcus Robinson and Christian Kirk all sidelined. Kirk could return as soon as next week.
After gaining 303 yards and 17 first downs on the way to a 20-3 halftime lead, San Francisco was held to 72 yards and three first downs in the second as the defense held on for the win. But Shanahan said the change that included three straight three-and-outs to end the game wasn't about losing Evans.
“We had a sack on two plays,” he said. "Didn’t have to do with Mike on those two plays. So, we had two three-and-outs and then didn’t get the ball again until a minute and a half left ... where we did three straight run plays. I think if we would’ve moved the chains and got a first down, we might’ve had more to that answer, but we went three-and-out twice.”
The 33-year-old Evans has been a key part of the 49ers’ offense in his first season in San Francisco. He has 27 catches for 420 yards and three touchdowns despite dealing with the broken ribs since Week 3.
Evans is a six-time Pro Bowler and topped 1,000 yards receiving in each of his first 11 seasons in the NFL with Tampa Bay. He was held to just 368 yards last season when he was limited to eight games because of injuries.
The 49ers only held a walkthrough instead of a full practice on Wednesday to get more time to recover from the Monday night game and listed several players who would have been unavailable had there been a practice.
That includes star defensive end Nick Bosa, who hasn’t been cleared to return to practice after missing the past four games with a calf injury. Shanahan said the team is hoping he will be able to return on Thursday.
Other players who were out on Wednesday were Samuel (hamstring), linebacker Garret Wallow (hamstring), safety Marques Sigle (ankle), linebacker Luke Gifford (groin), defensive back Siran Neal (knee), defensive back Upton Stout (shoulder) and defensive end Mykel Williams.
Safety Ashtyn Davis (hamstring) and linebacker Jaden Dugger (knee) was listed as limited.
The 49ers did get one key player back at practice with Dre Greenlaw returning after serving a one-game suspension for head-butting Seattle’s Ernest Jones IV following a late hit on the Seahawks sideline in Week 5.
“Old Dre Greenlawn’s back,” teammate Fred Warner said. “Obviously missed him out there. He’s back fresh, had his own little bye, and he’s ready to go.”
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San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Mike Evans (5) reacts after a getting up from a play before walking off the field during the first half of an NFL football game against the Washington Commanders in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Kelley L. Cox)
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Mike Evans, left, runs against Washington Commanders safety Nick Cross (25) during the first half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Kelley L. Cox)
RUPERT, Vt. (AP) — Carrying a large pump spray bottle and a small, sturdy brush, Caitlin Abrams stood before two starkly contrasting graves in a modest cemetery in western Vermont. Overcast skies hung low over a nearby hillside in full autumn color.
Last year, Abrams had delicately cleaned the tombstone of Mary Bailey, who died in 1852 at just 21 years old. The still-pristine white marble stone stood out compared to the neighboring grave, holding Bailey’s sister Eliza, covered in grime and moss collected over the decades.
Working in quick, gentle strokes, Abrams used her brush and sprayer to peel away dirt hiding the floral details on Eliza's grave before moving to the next.
“Sometimes you can definitely see a difference right away,” she said. “Other times, it’s a month later you’ll come back and go ‘oh my gosh, it’s beautiful.’”
Abrams is one of the many social media creators who have found success posting videos of themselves cleaning graves. They can attract large audiences, often including those looking for cleaning content or videos with repetitive and subtle sounds known for their calming effect.
The trend was particularly popular during the COVID-19 pandemic as people searched for safe hobbies, finding connections over death during a pandemic. It's also sparked criticism, with some worried that strangers are capitalizing on gravesites without notifying descendants and risking damaging the sites.
Yet Abrams doesn’t solely focus on the cleaning process. She researches and then shares the details she has found of the individual lives in her videos while filming the moss and buildup being washed away. Abrams focuses on 18th and 19th century headstones in remote yet picturesque graveyards in Vermont, and her viewers are drawn to her deep dives into the past that also touch on the dark nature of death and spirits.
“I let them pick me,” Abrams said, referring to how she selects what graves to clean. “I’m drawn to it and kind of look at it and see how I feel.”
Abrams likes to focus on the stories of young women and children, pointing to the connection she has as a mother of two in a world where men’s stories are often elevated.
Yet researching the dead takes time. It requires Abrams to cross-reference birth, marriage and death certificates, as well as newspaper clippings.
“It’s like journalism, but for dead people,” she joked.
While there’s no central agency counting how many cemeteries are in the U.S., data visualization expert Joshua Stevens attempted to map more than 144,000 of the nation's graveyards and cemeteries, many of which not only could use a good cleaning but also need restoration and preservation.
Online interest in the labor surrounding the upkeep of graveyards is encouraging, but can be a double-edged sword, said John Appell, a monument and gravestone restoration professional and CEO of Atlas Preservation.
“This is not a blanket statement, but there’s certainly a significant number of people that seem to be out there that kind of just want fame,” he said.
Without proper training, graves can become damaged with aggressive brushing or crumble if handled too roughly, he said. An amateur genealogist in 2021 admitted she had scrubbed roughly 200 gravestones at a Maryland cemetery in a way that left them damaged.
Workshops for volunteer cleanup efforts are one way to learn the skill before heading out to your local cemetery. In 2016, hundreds of volunteers in Louisiana helped restore a cemetery dating back to the Civil War.
“Cleaning is just one aspect of a much bigger subject,” Appell said, pointing to the need to also preserve monuments and structures inside historic cemeteries.
Abrams agreed that proper cleaning, as well as permission from cemeteries, are crucial before setting out to clean a grave.
Brushing off tombstones is a regular ritual in some cultures, including in Mexico where entire families clean and decorate graves, which are covered with orange marigolds for Day of the Dead. The holiday begins Oct. 31, remembering those who died in accidents; it continues Nov. 1 to mark those who died in childhood, and then those who died as adults on Nov. 2.
In the United States, cemeteries were among the country’s first public parks where communities could come together, Abrams said. But that sentiment has been lost over the years in the U.S. She hopes her work can help remove the fear surrounding cemeteries.
“I like the idea of a cemetery as a place where people can come and be and exist with the people who have passed before us,” she said.
Kruesi reported from Providence, Rhode Island.
Caitlin Abrams, who became popular on TikTok for her grave cleaning videos, cleans a gravestone at a cemetery in Rupert, Vt., Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Amanda Swinhart)
Gravestones in the Rupert Street Cemetery in Rupert, Vt., are pictured Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Amanda Swinhart)
Caitlin Abrams, who became popular on TikTok for her grave cleaning videos, cleans a gravestone at a cemetery in Rupert, Vt., Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Amanda Swinhart)
Caitlin Abrams, who became popular on TikTok for her grave cleaning videos, scrapes away moss and lichen from a gravestone at a cemetery in Rupert, Vt., Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Amanda Swinhart)
Caitlin Abrams, who became popular on TikTok for her grave cleaning videos, scrapes away moss and lichen from a gravestone at a cemetery in Rupert, Vt., Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Amanda Swinhart)
