Vernon Davis will decide Sunday if he can play week 6

Vernon Davis is a question mark once again for the San Francisco 49ers as they prepare for a week 6 showdown against the St. Louis Rams. The tight end will decide if he will play on Sunday.

Colin Kaepernick and the rest of the San Francisco 49ers are surely looking forward to having tight end Vernon Davis back in the lineup.

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Davis has played just three games this season, with limited production when he has been on the field. In total, Davis has just nine receptions for 91 yards this season. Consider how much of that damage came in the team’s opening game against the Dallas Cowboys, and it only becomes clearer that Davis hasn’t been right for most of the season.

It is a back injury that has been holding Davis back, and it looms as a potential issue for Davis’s status in week 6 as well. According to Steve Corkran, Davis will decide on Sunday if he can play this week against the St. Louis Rams on Monday night.

#49ers TE Davis will decide Sunday if he can play vs. Rams: "I don’t feel like I’m where I need to be at the moment but I’m getting there.”
— Steve Corkran (@CorkOnTheNFL) October 11, 2014

Davis is such an important player for the 49ers. As such, the team is faced with the unenviable task of weighing the short-term with the big picture. On the one hand, it would be great to have the veteran tight end back in the lineup for a divisional game with the Rams. On the other hand, if one or two more weeks will do more for his ability to stay healthy for the long haul this season, that would clearly become the right decision.

The extra day could make Davis available on Monday night. If doesn’t play, the 49ers will hope that his absence is a concession to his ability to stay on the field later this season.