8 49ers to watch closest in preseason opener
Preseason games don’t count, but they matter at least a little bit. The 49ers’ preseason slate begins at home Friday night vs. the Packers.
While 49ers coaches have gleaned a lot already from practice, there’s plenty they can learn about players in game situations. How well can that player operate at game speed? How well does the player adjust to in-game adversity? Can they handle games mentally and physically?
All of these things can come into play when it comes to decision-making on the depth chart and roster cuts. That’s why we’re dialed in to these eight 49ers on Friday evening at Levi’s Stadium:
OL Spencer Burford
(AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Burford, a fourth-round pick in this year’s draft, has been the starting right guard throughout camp. Playing well in practice is a very positive step, to be sure. Head coach Kyle Shanahan during camp spoke about how coaches can’t tell what an offensive linemen is made of until they play in a game though. Burford has acquitted himself well in practice, but how well he handles the every-down intensity of a game will either make or break his chances to be the first rookie to start on the 49ers’ OL in Week 1 since Mike McGlinchey.
CB Samuel Womack
(Ethan Swope/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)
Can the 49ers hit another home run in the fifth round? Womack is just a rookie so he has a steep hill to climb for the nickel corner job, but there’s not much ahead of him in terms of quality veterans. He has a shot to jump in and steal a starting job right away, but it’s going to take some good outings in game situations. Womack has overcome sizable odds before in his football career. Seeing how he responds in his first NFL game action should be fun.
C Jake Brendel
Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
There’s a very real chance Brendel is the 49ers’ starting center this season and we’ve not seen much of him in game action. As with Burford how well he plays will matter. How much he plays is another indicator of where he stands with the 49ers’ coaching staff though. If he plays a ton of snaps it tells us they need to see more from him. If he sits after a couple series it could be a tell that the coaching staff is confident in what they know about him as a player and could indicate he’s on the inside track for a starting spot.
DE Drake Jackson
(AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Jackson’s size and athleticism is evident on his college tape and when he does backflips before practice. How well can he get after the quarterback against NFL offensive tackles though? That’ll be the big question for the 49ers’ first pick in this year’s draft. Just seeing how he moves will be interesting, but we’re also watching to see if he kicks inside at all and what he looks like as a pass rusher from the interior.
RB Trey Sermon
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The 2021 third-round pick had a rocky rookie season, but he’s turned that around with a strong camp performance so far. Success for in a game setting is less about how well he breaks tackles or runs through defenders, and more about how decisive he is in picking his hole and getting upfield. It’s fine that he can do it in practice. Now it needs to translate to a more intense, less controlled environment.
RB Tyrion Davis-Price
(AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Davis-Price has had some moments in camp, but his downhill style is more effective in a live setting where tackling is allowed. It’ll be interesting to see whether he can run through contact as effectively in the pros as he did in college, and to see what his open-field elusiveness looks like against NFL players. He should at least carve out a short-yardage role. These games will give a look into how much further his opportunities for touches will expand.
CB Deommodore Lenoir
(AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Lenoir struggled through most of last season after putting together a decent training camp. The 49ers elected to keep him at outside corner this year instead of moving him inside where it was assumed he’d find a role when he was drafted. San Francisco’s cornerback room is much deeper this year than last year, and Lenoir, a 2021 fifth-round pick, is now in Year 2. He’s in a spot where he could be left off the final roster. It’ll be fascinating to see how he plays in what should be extended action, since his range of possible roles runs from not making the team to being the first cornerback off the bench.
QB Trey Lance
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Oh, yeah. Him too.
