Tag: 49ers training camp

49ers offer glimpse of early training camp depth chart

Here’s what the 49ers early training camp depth chart showed us with some starters out of practice.

The 49ers during Friday’s practice offered a peek at what the depth chart looks like in the early portion of training camp.

With a slew of players either sitting out due to injury or rest, several reserves got into action with starters. ESPN’s Nick Wagoner noted tight end Eric Saubert rolled with the first team while George Kittle sat out. Cornerback Charvarius Ward also missed the session, allowing Isaac Yiadom to play with the starting unit. Defensive end Nick Bosa was replaced by Yetur Gross-Matos and defensive tackle Kevin Givens filled in for Maliek Collins.

This is all very preliminary, but it does give us some insight into how things are starting out on San Francisco’s depth chart. While Saubert and Givens aren’t liable to snag starting jobs, Yiadom and Gross-Matos are both players who could certainly push their way to the top of the depth chart.

Yiadom is in the mix to snag the third CB spot where he’d be on the field a ton in nickel packages. He could play outside with Ward while Deommodore Lenoir kicked into the slot.

Gross-Matos won’t replace Bosa, but he could emerge as the No. 1 option to start on the opposite edge. Veteran Leonard Floyd figures to be the starter to open camp. It’s not out of the realm of possibilities though that Gross-Matos has a strong enough camp to unseat the nine-year veteran.

We’ll keep a close eye on which reserves are getting starters reps throughout camp. Right now it’s interesting, but it’ll really start to matter more as we get closer to the regular season.

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Injured 49ers rookie making progress towards return

The 49ers first round pick was working on the side of the field during practice on Thursday.

While Brandon Aiyuk and Trent Williams weren’t on the field to start training camp for contract reasons, the San Francisco 49ers were missing another member at practice due to an injury.

Before making his highly-anticipated debut at practice, the 49ers 2024 first-round pick, Ricky Pearsall, has been sidelined to start training camp. Pearsall was placed on the NFI list to start camp due to a hamstring injury.

Despite missing practice, Pearsall was able to get some work in on the sideline on Thursday in Santa Clara.

Via @NBCS49ers on Twitter:

Via @OurSF49ers on Twitter:

During his final season at Florida, Pearsall recorded 65 receptions for a career-best 965 yards to go along with six total touchdowns.

This post originally appeared on Niners Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

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Rock Ya-Sin messed around with Deebo Samuel and found out

Rock Ya-Sin: Messed around.
Rock Ya-Sin: Found out.

It’s not easy to win a contested catch situation with 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel. New cornerback Rock Ya-Sin, a veteran free agent addition by San Francisco this offseason, found that out the hard way at Thursday’s practice.

Samuel ran a slant with Brandon Allen under center and Ya-Sin read it perfectly. He broke on the ball and got to the receiver as soon as Allen’s pass did. Ya-Sin even got hands on the football. The problem for him was that Samuel also got hands on the football, and when that becomes a battle, it’s not one a cornerback is often going to win.

Here’s video from the 49ers:

Samuel’s nickname comes from the bully in the movie ‘Friday,’ and plays like this help emphasize why the nickname fits. His after-the-catch prowess is what grabs all the headlines for Samuel, but there aren’t many players better at winning in situations like this one. And Rock Ya-Sin learned as much Thursday.

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49ers take advantage of roster spot opened by Trent Williams holdout

Trent Williams is holding out which opened a roster spot for a familiar WR.

49ers star left tackle Trent Williams wasn’t among the players to report to training camp. San Francisco on Thursday took advantage of the absence and cleared a roster spot by placing Williams on the reserve/did not report list. In a corresponding move they signed wide receiver Malik Turner to the 90-man roster.

Williams is looking for an adjusted contract after the guaranteed money on his six-year deal ran out last year. His absence isn’t ideal, but he also has enough experience that missing a handful of practices shouldn’t be a problem for the 36-year-old.

Turner is a familiar name for fans tapped into preseason rosters. He spent the 2022 offseason with San Francisco and looked like he might be in line to make the team after a strong preseason performance. The 49ers wound up cutting Turner and re-signing him to their practice squad. He stayed there until he was let go in early November.

It’s likely the 49ers just need some camp bodies at receiver since Brandon Aiyuk isn’t participating and Ricky Pearsall is on the non-football injury list. Turner is a long shot to have a serious impact on the race for roster spots, although his special teams contributions give him a chance to stick around on the practice squad.

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Brock Purdy connects with unlikely target in 49ers training camp video

Woooo 49ers practice video!

The 49ers on Wednesday had their first training camp practice of the year. With it came our first bits of practice footage.

San Francisco posted on its official team account a video of quarterback Brock Purdy making a throw on a deep out. While there are a handful of stars who could’ve been on the receiving end of that toss, it was actually speedster Danny Gray who hauled it in.

Gray is on the outside looking in at a roster spot and has a steep climb ahead of him, but impacting the passing game beyond his role as a deep threat is going to be paramount, and making plays like this one is a nice start.

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Brandon Aiyuk watching practice from sideline to start training camp

The wide receiver was watching from the sideline on the opening day of practice.

Following an offseason of speculation, rumors and chatter that recently included a trade request, Brandon Aiyuk’s contract situation is still unresolved as training camp gets underway for the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara.

Despite not signing a new deal, or being traded, the rising star pass catcher reported for the start of training camp on Tuesday. While he did return to the 49ers facility at the start of camp, Aiyuk didn’t suit up for the opening practice on Wednesday.

Aiyuk watched the first practice from the sideline in a t-shirt and shorts.

Via @nwagoner on Twitter:

Aiyuk was later seen leaving the 49ers practice field with John Lynch.

Via @mattbarrows on Twitter:

Aiyuk is entering the final season of his rookie contract with the 49ers. The 49ers drafted Aiyuk in the first round of the 2020 NFL draft out of Arizona State. Aiyuk is coming off a career-high season in yards with 1342. Aiyuk added 75 receptions and seven touchdowns. Aiyuk has recorded over 1000 yards, 75 or more catches and at least seven touchdowns in his last two seasons with the Niners.

This post originally appeared on Niners Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

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Former 49ers 3rd-round pick a long shot to make roster in 3rd season

The #49ers might have to cut ties early with yet another early-round offensive weapon.

The 49ers receiving corps will be worth keeping a close eye on when the team begins training camp in late July.

Aside from the Brandon Aiyuk situation, which may or may not be resolved by the time the team takes the field, San Francisco also has a handful of receivers who appeared to be in the team’s long-term plans that might now be on the outs.

For the sake of argument here we’ll say Aiyuk is with the club since that appears to be the likeliest outcome regardless of whether he gets an extension done. That leaves this group cemented on the roster:

Deebo Samuel
Brandon Aiyuk
Ricky Pearsall
Jauan Jennings

Even if the team keeps six receivers, that leaves two spots for a group of several players vying for those spots. At least one player is going to be out among Danny Gray, Ronnie Bell and Jacob Cowing. Chris Conley became a trusted option for head coach Kyle Shanahan down the stretch last season, and Trent Taylor returned on a one-year free agent deal.

Even if we remove Conley and Taylor, assuming they can be scooped for the practice squad, that means Cowing, Bell and Gray are three players vying for two roster spots.

It’s hard to imagine the 49ers are going to give up on Cowing, a rookie fourth-round pick, after just one training camp. That leaves one spot for Bell and Gray if the 49ers keep six receivers.

That’s where Bell has the edge over Gray, who spent all of last season on Injured Reserve. Bell was a seventh-round rookie last year and managed to be more productive in his first year than Gray, a former third-round pick. Bell caught six passes for 68 yards and three touchdowns in 183 offensive snaps while also contributing 112 special teams snaps. Gray as a rookie caught one ball for 10 yards in 87 offensive snaps and contributed just 19 special teams snaps.

That leaves a very narrow path to the roster for Gray. He has two options assuming the 49ers receiving corps is fully healthy.

Gray’s first option is the least likely. He’d have to take such a significant leap as a receiver that the 49ers simply couldn’t leave him off the roster. This would put him ahead of Pearsall for offensive snaps, and might even pull him ahead of Jennings.

His second, more likely option, is to find ways to make a special teams impact. That’s another place he’d need to take a significant leap, but it’s an easier leap to make than the one on offense.

Realistic math says Gray is the odd man out going into camp. Even if the 49ers may be wary of cutting a third-round pick before his third NFL season, history says they’ll do it if they don’t think that player is going to contribute (see: running backs Trey Sermon and Tyrion Davis-Price). That makes Gray one of the most interesting players to watch in camp. He’ll either make the club and have an impact, or be on the hunt for a new team.

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49ers open training camp practice dates announced

We have 49ers training camp practice dates!

The 49ers on Thursday announced open practice dates for 2024 training camp.

Rookies report to the team facility on July 16, and veterans are slated to report the following week on July 23.

The first open practice is two days later. Here are the dates:

Thursday, July 25
Friday, July 26
Monday, July 29
Tuesday, July 30
Wednesday, July 31
Friday, August 2
Saturday, August 3
Sunday, August 4
Tuesday, August 6
Wednesday August 7

Practices are scheduled to run for two hours, with start time slated for 10:15am Pacific at the SAP Performance Facility at Levi’s Stadium.

Tickets go on sale to the general public Thursday, July 18 at 12:00pm Pacific for $20 with proceeds going to the 49ers foundation.

Season ticket holders will have early access to tickets beginning Monday, July 15 at 9:00am Pacific. Cost for those tickets will be $10 per the 49ers.

The final practice on August 7 will be ’87 Day’ where the 49ers honor Dwight Clark by raising awareness for people impacted by ALS. Ticket sales for ’87 Day’ are donated to the Golden Heart Fund.

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4 training camp questions for 49ers new-look LB corps

The #49ers LB corps could look a little different this year, leading to some big questions in training camp.

The 49ers linebacking corps has been a pretty substantial key to their defensive dominance over the last few seasons. Fred Warner is the consensus best LB in the NFL and Dre Greenlaw’s ascension into the upper tier at the position has allowed San Francisco to control the middle of the field as well as any team in the league.

2024 comes with a new set of challenges though as the club looks to integrate some new depth and replace Greenlaw who is recovering from a torn Achilles he suffered in the Super Bowl. We’ll learn plenty about how things shake out with that group in training camp, and these are the questions we’ll be looking to have answered:

1. Can De’Vondre Campbell still play?

Campbell was an All-Pro just three seasons ago. Since then his overall production has dipped, but it could be a product of the personnel or scheme in Green Bay. He’s an undeniably talented veteran who should be able to fill in for Greenlaw even if it is past time for Campbell to be that level of player. Playing next to Warner should elevate the 31-year-old. How much it elevates his play is something we’ll be intrigued to see in camp.

2. Will Dre Greenlaw participate at all?

It sounds like Greenlaw is destined for the PUP list which would hold him out of camp and the first few weeks of the regular season. General manager John Lynch said Greenlaw wants to return by Week 1, although the GM did indicate that timeline was probably too ambitious. If Greenlaw participates in any camp though it would be a good sign that he’s tracking toward returning early in the year. If he spends all of camp on PUP, which is the most likely scenario, we can expect a mid-to-late season return if he’s able to suit up in 2024 at all.

3. Who’s the third LB?

While the Greenlaw saga plays out we’ll also need to keep an eye on which player steps in as the Sam LB in base packages. Last year the role belonged to Oren Burks who jumped up to the WLB spot when Greenlaw went down. The SLB isn’t on the field very often given how often defenses run in sub packages against modern offenses, but the winner of that job would likely be the first player up in the event that one of Campbell or Warner are unavailable. There’s a relative lack of experience behind the two starters, which makes SLB a pretty significant question mark and position battle in camp.

4. How are the 2023 picks coming along?

This one piggybacks off the third LB conversation. San Francisco selected LBs Dee Winters and Jalen Graham late on Day 3 in last year’s draft. Neither player contributed defensively as rookies, but there’s reason for optimism about both given the 49ers’ penchant for finding quality LB talent. This is a wide open door for both to step into a starting role as the third LB. If either of them takes that job this season it bodes well for their future as a contributor for San Francisco’s defense. Watching their progress should be a fun aspect of camp this year.

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Do 49ers need to add another starting safety by training camp?

Are the 49ers going to add another safety before training camp?

There may not be a position on the 49ers’ roster with more variance than safety. On the surface they look set with starters and depth, but they may also need to bring in another starter by training camp.

The answer to whether they should bring in another starting-caliber safety comes down to two factors.

First is Talanoa Hufanga’s health. The strong safety tore his ACL in Week 11 and the team sounds confident he’ll be ready to play during training camp. However, it’s unclear at exactly what point he’ll be available to participate in camp. And when he does return there’s no guarantee he’ll be the All-Pro caliber player he was over the last couple seasons. If he’s healthy and contributing at a high level, San Francisco’s depth should be fine.

If Hufanga is not ready to play, the second factor comes into play. Experience is in short supply on the 49ers’ roster at safety. Second-year third-round pick Ji’Ayir Brown started only five games last regular season and was benched for the divisional round of the playoffs before starting the NFC championship game and Super Bowl. He did acquit himself well which explains San Francisco’s optimism about him, but his ability to step in and be a starter is still a question mark.

The next man up behind Brown appears to be rookie fourth-round pick Malik Mustapha. While Mustapha looks the part of a do-everything safety for the 49ers, his ability to play in the NFL is still a sizable question mark. After the Brown-Mustapha pairing the depth gets a lot thinner and features mainly special teams contributors.

It doesn’t sound like San Francisco is interested in bringing in a starter. And that makes sense since they’re optimistic about Hufanga’s availability for the regular season. If Hufanga can play, Brown can start alongside him and the team can bring Mustapha along slowly the same way they did with Brown. If he’s unavailable or if one of Mustapha or Brown don’t look prepared to contribute, then they may look to add another starting-caliber player to the mix.

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