SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Linebacker Jeff Ulbrich, the San Francisco 49ers' second-leading tackler last season, was placed on injured reserve Wednesday after agreeing to have surgery to reattach his biceps muscle to his arm.
Ulbrich, second in the NFC this season with 41 tackles according to league stats, spoke with several medical specialists before reluctantly scheduling surgery for Thursday to repair a tendon on his left arm.
If he had attempted to play through the injury, which occurred while trying to tackle Indianapolis' Edgerrin James last weekend, he would have lost half of the strength in his arm for the rest of his life.
Though coaches, teammates and his wife urged the hard-nosed linebacker to have surgery, Ulbrich waited four days before deciding it was the only rational move. He will need at least four months to recover.
Ken Norton Jr. is among the players who have played through the injury. When Ulbrich spoke to the former 49ers linebacker this week, Norton said he would have undergone the surgery if he had another chance.
Ulbrich, a six-year veteran credited with 92 tackles last season, was a key component in the 49ers' switch to a 3-4 defense this season under new coach Mike Nolan. With injuries to Ulbrich and Julian Peterson, as well as a trade sending Jamie Winborn to Jacksonville, the 49ers mostly played a 4-3 against the Colts last week.
"You lose a guy that you count on every week -- a blue-collar guy," said Mike Singletary, the 49ers' assistant head coach and linebackers coach. "You never have to worry about, 'I wonder whether Jeff knows the play.' He knows it, probably better than you do."
Ulbrich, who plans to coach after his playing career, will spend the rest of the season assisting Singletary and the 49ers' defensive coaching staff in any way he can. He'll also tutor Saleem Rasheed, his replacement in the starting lineup.
"It's a big opportunity, but obviously not the way I want it with a guy like 'Brich going out," Rasheed said. "To me, it's a no-brainer to have the surgery. I'm going to do my best to fill the void as far as being somebody the guys can count on."
The 49ers are pleased with their linebackers' growth under Singletary, who has high praise for Ulbrich and middle linebacker Derek Smith. Rasheed is a work in progress, but Singletary believes the playing time will boost his skills -- even though the Niners' defense could have a different look with its new personnel.
"Saleem is more like a cat, a cat-quick guy," Singletary said. "Jeff is more like a dog. He's going to bite you. Saleem has to develop that. We haven't seen that yet. He's got to grow some fangs real quick."
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