SANTA CLARA — Wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk’s availability Thursday night took a major downward turn with the 49ers’ roster moves on game day.
The 49ers have elevated veteran receiver Chris Conley from the practice squad to be available if Aiyuk is ruled out.
All indications are that Aiyuk is expected to be listed among the team’s inactive players 90 minutes before kickoff Thursday night against the New York Giants at Levi’s Stadium.
Aiyuk suffered a left shoulder injury in the 49ers’ Week 2 win over the Los Angeles Rams. The club listed him as questionable for the game in their final status report before facing the Giants in Week 3.
The wide receiver has turned into a favorite target for quarterback Brock Purdy. He was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week after catching eight passes for 129 yards and two touchdowns in the season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Conley is available to face the Giants, along with the team’s healthy receivers: Deebo Samuel, Juwan Jennings, Ronnie Bell and Ray Ray McCloud.
The 49ers also made moves to have two additional running backs available for the game with Ambry Thomas (knee) also listed as questionable.
The 49ers promoted cornerback Tre Swilling from the practice squad to the 53-man roster, along with Conley, senior cornerback Shemar Jean-Charles from the practice squad.
To make room on the active roster for Swilling, the 49ers released veteran linebacker Anthony Brown, who the club signed on Tuesday.
Brown becomes a free agent and could be re-signed by the 49ers in the coming days.
Conley is in his ninth NFL season. He has spent time with Kansas City, Jacksonville, Houston and Tennessee.
He appeared in 109 games with 63 starts. Conley has 217 career receptions for 2,853 yards and 15 touchdowns.
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