With one preseason game in the books it’s time for a new 49ers’ roster projection.
Practices and their preseason opener have caused a bit of minor shuffling in roster makeup and which players make the final cut. The split is still even with 25 players on each side of the ball with the three specialists rounding out the complete active roster.
As a reminder:
And now here’s the latest:
Quarterback (2)
Trey Lance
Nate Sudfeld
Brock Purdy’s preseason debut was fun, but it wasn’t enough to move him ahead of Sudfeld and it’s hard to imagine the 49ers keeping three quarterbacks.
Notable cuts: Jimmy Garoppolo, Brock Purdy
Running back (5)
Elijah Mitchell
Trey Sermon
Tyrion Davis-Price
Jeff Wilson Jr.
JaMycal Hasty
Five is a ton of running backs, but the 49ers have needed a deep group of RBs over the last couple seasons and it’s easy to see them holding onto five with no real number crunches elsewhere.
Fullback (1)
Kyle Juszczyk
No questions here.
Wide receiver (5)
Deebo Samuel
Brandon Aiyuk
Jauan Jennings
Ray-Ray McCloud
Danny Gray
There’s a change here with Malik Turner being left off in order to add another RB. This group of five receivers seems pretty locked in and it’ll take a pretty substantial performance from another WR to break in and force San Francisco to keep six.
Notable cuts: Malik Turner, Marcus Johnson, Willie Snead, KeeSean Johnson.
Tight end (4)
George Kittle
Charlie Woerner
Ross Dwelley
Tyler Kroft
Four tight ends is a change from our last projection where the 49ers had just three. Kroft’s pass-catching ability is an asset neither Woerner nor Dwelley have provided in their time as 49ers.
Notable cuts: Tanner Hudson
Offensive line (9)
Trent Williams
Mike McGlinchey
Colton McKivitz
Jake Brendel
Daniel Brunskill
Aaron Banks
Jaylon Moore
Spencer Burford
One fewer offensive lineman than last time thanks to the additional tight end. Maybe they wind up keeping an additional OL or two to give them more depth, but they may not have nine NFL-caliber offensive linemen on the roster in 2022. This will be an interesting group to watch over the last couple preseason games to see if any players stand out in game situations.
Notable cuts: Jason Poe, Nick Zakelj, Justin Skule
Defensive line (10)
Nick Bosa
Samson Ebukam
Drake Jackson
Charles Omenihu
Kerry Hyder
Kemoko Turay
Arik Armstead
Javon Kinlaw
Kevin Givens
Hassan Ridgeway
There’s no changes to this group from our last projection. It feels pretty set and they’ll still probably get rid of an NFL-caliber defensive lineman or two.
Notable cuts: Robert Nkemdiche, Jordan Willis
Linebacker (5)
Fred Warner
Dre Greenlaw
Azeez Al-Shaair
Oren Burks
Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles
There’s no change this time, but it wouldn’t be a major surprise if Curtis Robinson or one of the undrafted rookies winds up snagging that fifth spot.
Notable cuts: Curtis Robinson, Marcelino McCrary-Ball
Cornerback (6)
Charvarius Ward
Emmanuel Moseley
Ambry Thomas
Darqueze Dennard
Samuel Womack
Deommodore Lenoir
There’s still six cornerbacks, but a small change with the second-year CB Lenoir sliding in over veteran Dontae Johnson. Johnson suffered fractured rib cartilage in the preseason opener which may hinder his ability to land a roster spot. For now it’s Lenoir, but Johnson could wind up sneaking in depending on his health. Jason Verrett could also be a factor when he returns from the PUP list. It sounds like that may not happen until closer to the middle of the season though.
Notable cuts: Dontae Johnson, Ka’dar Hollman, Tariq Castro-Fields
UPDATE:
Darqueze Dennard was let go as part of the 49ers’ first roster cuts. Johnson would likely be the player to replace him on the roster, assuming the 49ers keep six CBs.
Safety (4)
Jimmie Ward
Tarvarius Moore
Talanoa Hufanga
George Odum
The only way this four gets a shakeup appears to be if there’s an injury.
Specialists (3)
Robbie Gould
Mitch Wishnowsky
Taybor Pepper
Wishnowsky’s hair is strong.
