
SANTA CLARA -- Receiver Mario Manningham is expected to be sidelined for a second consecutive game with a right shoulder injury.
Manningham, who took part only in individual drills this week, is listed as doubtful for Sunday night's game against the New England Patriots. He did not participate in Friday's practice because the 49ers do not go through individual drills on Fridays. Michael Crabtree and Randy Moss will see the most action among the 49ers' wide receivers.
Delanie Walker is expected to see significant playing time, as the 49ers will go with two tight ends.
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Manningham's expected absence is likely to open the door for rookie A.J. Jenkins, who played eight snaps in the 49ers' 27-13 victory over the Miami Dolphins. Jenkins did not see any passes thrown his way in his limited duty.
"I'm very excited for the opportunity to be out there again to get the experience," Jenkins said on Friday. "I'll play to the best of my ability and just focus.
"I'm not a person who's been all about myself. Right now, I'm just going with the flow of things and help this team win, whether it's blocking the whole game or catching all the balls. It doesn't matter. It's about getting the win."
Jenkins did not see any action in the 49ers' first 12 games as he was behind Crabtree, Moss, Manningham, Kyle Williams and Ted Ginn on the depth chart.
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"I didn't cause any controversy or anything," Jenkins said. "I'm laid back. I understood why I wasn't dressing, so I accepted it. But I knew when it was my time to suit up, I'd be ready to go. I wasn't going every week assuming I wasn't going to play. Every week for me, I was preparing for the game. I wasn't taking weeks off, so I was making big strides during that time having a good mindset through the week."
49ERS
Doubtful: WR Mario Manningham (shoulder)
Probable: K David Akers (pelvis), LB Navorro Bowman (shoulder), CB Tarell Brown (shoulder), CB Chris Culliver (knee), LB Tavares Gooden (ribs), RB Frank Gore (wrist), RB Bruce Miller (shoulder), CB Carlos Rogers (knee), LB Aldon Smith (shoulder), DT Will Tukuafu (wrist), LB Patrick Willis (shoulder)
PATRIOTS
Questionable: CB Kyle Arrington (knee), DT Ron Brace (elbow), S Patrick Chung (shoulder, hamstring), G Dan Connolly (back), CB Alfonzo Dennard (hamstring), TE Rob Gronkowski (forearm, hip), TE Aaron Hernandez (ankle), LB Dont'a Hightower (hamstring), DE Chandler Jones (ankle), WR Brandon Lloyd (knee), DT Kyle Love (knee), G Logan Mankins (ankle, calf), C Nick McDonald (shoulder), LB Brandon Spikes (knee, ankle), CB Aqib Talib (hip), T Sebastian Vollmer (back, knee), WR Wes Welker (ankle), LB Tracy White (elbow)
Probable: LB Jerod Mayo (elbow)
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The 49ers plan to enter Sunday's game with one roster vacancy. The 49ers have 52 players on their roster. Each team is allowed to suit up only 46 players, so any player the 49ers would think about promoting from the practice squad would not be active for Sunday's game anyway, coach Jim Harbaugh confirmed.