49ers RB Cannon taken off turf in ambulance after opening kickoff

Cannon was seen moving his arms and speaking before he was loaded into the ambulance.

SEATTLE — Trenton Cannon, a 49ers special teams ace this season, was seriously injured covering Sunday’s opening kickoff. The right side of his head and neck collided with Niners safety Talanoa Hufanga’s leg.

As he tried to tackle Seahawks returner DJ Dallas on the kickoff, Cannon reached out while he was falling. Dallas went by Cannon’s outstretched right arm and the knee of Hufanga, who was also in pursuit of Dallas, connected with Cannon at full speed.

Medical staff from both teams immediately rushed to Cannon’s aid, and an ambulance was on the field within three minutes to transport him to a nearby hospital.

Within minutes, the 49ers announced Cannon’s injury as a concussion and ruled him out for the game.

Cannon was shown on television speaking and moving his arms before he was loaded into the vehicle.

The entire 49ers team came onto the field to show their support for Cannon, who joined the team in September amid a rash of running back injuries.

The game was delayed nearly 10 minutes before action resumed with the 49ers’ defense presumably forcing a three-and-out, only for the Seattle Seahawks to pull off a fake punt for a 73-yard touchdown run by Travis Homer.

Cannon, 27, is in his fourth season — his first with the 49ers — out of Virginia State. He’s spent time with the Panthers and Ravens after being drafted by the Jets in the sixth round of the 2018 draft.

This is a developing story. We’ll update with more information when it is available.

Entire #49ers team is on field concerned as ambulance comes out with lights on for this emergency pic.twitter.com/fBMmaQUted

— Cam Inman (@CamInman) December 5, 2021