Wide receiver Jordan Matthews got released Saturday by the 49ers so they could activate long snapper Kyle Nelson ahead of Sunday’s visit by the Carolina Panthers.
Nelson just completed a 10-game suspension for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy, the result of unknowingly taking a tainted supplement.
Six games of that suspension carried over to this season, during which the 49ers used three different long snappers. Robbie Gould has missed a career-high six field-goal attempts, but he made his final three last Sunday in a 9-0 win at Washington.
Matthews only played three offensive snaps in that game, his 49ers debut after being inactive the previous two games since re-signing.