The 49ers announced on Sept. 26 that Davis informed them of his plans to retire.
On Saturday, Davis tweeted his thanks to 49ers owner Jed York:
Davis retired in June 2015 as part of the San Francisco exodus in which Patrick Willis, Chris Borland and Justin Smith also hung up their cleats.
In his official statement at the time (via ESPN's Adam Schefter), Davis said he just needed "a year or so away from the NFL" to help his body heal from injuries. He missed nine games during the 2014 season, including four due to a concussion suffered in a game against the New York Giants in mid-November.
The NFL officially approved Davis' reinstatement on July 30, and he was expected to begin the season as the 49ers' starting right guard. He was officially listed as questionable for the season opener against the Los Angeles Rams for non-injury reasons.
Two days before the season opener, Cam Inman of the San Jose Mercury News reported that Davis was again contemplating retirement, but 49ers head coach Chip Kelly hoped to convince him to keep playing. After appearing briefly in San Francisco's Week 1 win over the Rams, he suffered a concussion during practice the ensuing Thursday, according to Inman, and sat out each of the past two weeks.
Ultimately, Davis made the decision that he felt was best for him.
Though the 49ers would be better with Davis, they now must take an alternative route at right guard.
The good news is they already established some depth at guard with Davis' status for this season up in the air. Andrew Tiller, who appeared in 12 games last season, started at right guard in Weeks 2 and 3, while rookie Joshua Garnett could also see reps at the position.
It's not an ideal situation for the 49ers to be in during the season, but they are far better prepared to handle Davis' sudden retirement than they were in 2015.
