The San Francisco 49ers are facing Chicago Bears in their NFL season opener and will be without the services of tight end George Kittle, running back Ty Davis-Price and wide receiver Danny Gray.

The Soldier Field has been witnessing steady rain on Sunday, September 11, which has resulted in waterlogging in the southwest corner of the pitch only after half an hour of the removal of the tarp. This has forced the 49ers to shift their warmup to the opposite side of the hash marks.

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The 49ers are missing Kittle for a groin injury which began to trouble him on Monday, coach Kyle Shanahan revealed recently.

Rookie Gray’s agility and down-field ability resulted in him being a third-round pick. However, the game plan of the 49ers did not suit the 23-year-old in his debut. They are hoping to run the ball and Elijah Mitchell, Jeff Wilson Jr. and Jordan Mason, the rookie who remained undrafted, will suit up instead of Davis-Price.

The unavailability of rookies Gray and Davis-Price, both third-round picks, is similar to the 49ers’ NFL opener in the 2021 season. Trey Sermon, who was a third-round pick last year, did not suit up as the team replaced him with Mitchell.

49ers quarterback Trey Lance recently said that while he spent his childhood in Minnesota and played college football for North Dakota State, he has little experience in a wet weather game.

“Minnesota was a lot more snow than rain, for sure. So, I haven’t played in a ton of rain games,” Lance said.

“And obviously North Dakota State, we’re playing in the dome, but a lot of practices, definitely a lot of practices in poor, cold weather, but I don’t think it’ll be too cold, so we should be alright,” the 22-year-old added.

According to the forecasts, the game will witness rain and a temperature of 69 degrees throughout. However, the rain has a 50 per cent chance of decreasing gradually in the second half.

In the absence of Kittle, Lance will shift his focus toward Tyler Kroft, Ross Dwelley and Charlie Woerner. The 49ers will also miss out on guard Daniel Brunskill, who is out with a hamstring problem since the preseason, but their offense is otherwise healthy.

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Lance will be supported by wide receiver Deebo Samuel, left tackle Trent Williams and other emerging talents in wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk, Ray-Ray McCloud, Jauan Jennings and Malik Turner.

Kittle has become increasingly injury-prone since his record contract extension in August 2020, which will see him earning $75 million in five years. While he had missed only three games in as many years, Kittle has since missed at least 14 in 36 games.