With the 49ers’ 53-man roster mostly settled, it’s time to look at what their depth chart might look like heading into their Week 1 showdown with the Steelers. We’ll start on the offensive side.
For San Francisco there were no starting jobs open on offense this offseason. Brock Purdy ensured that when he returned from offseason elbow surgery on the second day of training camp.
Buy 49ers TicketsWith Purdy cemented as the team’s starting QB, and apparently no real competition for starting jobs on the offensive line, the team’s starting group on offense was set. Down the depth chart though things could look a little different.
Let’s project the 49ers’ offensive depth chart for the season opener:
Quarterback
1: Brock Purdy
2: Sam Darnold
3: Brandon Allen
No real questions or debates here. Ideally for the 49ers Purdy will be the only starting QB this year. It would be only the second time under head coach Kyle Shanahan that they needed just one QB in a season.
Running back
1: Christian McCaffrey
2: Elijah Mitchell
3: Jordan Mason
3.5: Tyrion Davis-Price
Whoever McCaffrey’s backup is on a given week will likely have a significant role on offense. For now Mason gets the nod over Davis-Price because of special teams, but Davis-Price was more sure-handed during the preseason which may earn him an offensive role if one of McCaffrey or Mitchell are out.
Fullback
1: Kyle Juszczyk
2: Ross Dwelley
The 49ers don’t really have a backup FB. Dwelley has taken on that role in the past, but it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if rookie TE Brayden Willis saw additional offensive snaps in Juszczyk’s absence either.
Wide receiver
1a: Deebo Samuel
1b: Brandon Aiyuk
3: Jauan Jennings
4: Ronnie Bell
5: Ray-Ray McCloud
McCloud is likely out for the season opener so a veteran like Chris Conley or Willie Snead IV could be elevated from the practice squad to take on the fourth WR role while Bell sits as No. 5 and holds kick return duties. For now though the rookie seventh-round pick is ahead of his injured teammate among players on the 53-man roster. As for Samuel or Aiyuk as the WR1 – that’ll likely depend on the week.
Tight end
1: George Kittle
2: Charlie Woerner
3: Ross Dwelley
4: Brayden Willis
Woerner has pretty clearly been ahead of Dwelley the last couple years so there’s no real reason to change that now. Willis will be intriguing to watch this year to see if he can start nailing down enough of the offense to start eating into some of the Woerner/Dwelley snaps.
Left tackle
1: Trent Williams
2: Jaylon Moore
3: Matt Pryor
Moore is probably ahead of Pryor for the backup LT job since he played there more during the preseason. In the preseason finale vs. the Chargers Moore was with the starting offensive line in place of Williams which is a sign the team views him as the top backup option there.
Left guard
1: Aaron Banks
2: Jon Feliciano
3: Nick Zakelj
With Zakelj still working out the kinks in his transition to the interior, the more experienced Feliciano will likely be the first player off the bench there.
Center
1: Jake Brendel
2: Jon Feliciano
Feliciano didn’t work much at center during the preseason with Keith Ismael and Corey Luciano on the roster. Now he’s the only player aside from Brendel with real center experience in the NFL.
Right guard
1: Spencer Burford
2: Jon Feliciano
3: Matt Pryor
There’s Feliciano again, which sort of underscores how thin the 49ers’ depth is on the interior. Pryor has some experience at both guard spots which may put him above Feliciano, but it’s likely in the event of just one absence on the interior that Feliciano is the one to fill the void.
Right tackle
1: Colton McKivitz
2: Matt Pryor
3: Jaylon Moore
The 49ers may view Moore as the swing tackle who plays either tackle spot if a starter goes down, but Pryor improved at the RT spot during the preseason and might’ve done enough to snag a backup job there.
