TE Ross Dwelley, who made the cut, has special teams experience from last year, while Kroft’s prospective return gives them another weapon they can get out into a route from two-tight end looks where Kittle or Charlie Woerner serve as the blocking tight end. Unless the 49ers felt Turner was going to be a valuable addition on special teams, there would have been little point carrying a sixth receiver. Even when the Niners do go five wide, tight end George Kittle is almost certain to be on the field. However, the 49ers run 22 personnel more often than they go five wide, and that will continue to be the case with Lance under center. That means the 49ers will carry four tight ends rather than six receivers, which is something of a surprise since many had expected WR Malik Turner to make the roster as the sixth and final wideout. Though he was not named on the initial 53, tight end Tyler Kroft has agreed a deal to return to the team once safety Jimmie Ward and linebacker Curtis Robinson are placed on injured reserve. It is unlikely that Sermon or Mason – who enjoyed an extremely strong preseason – would have cleared waivers and made it to the San Francisco practice squad, so keeping them on the active roster was the simplest way to ensure the 49ers are heavily protected against injuries to their top-two backs and might not have lean so heavily on Samuel this time if Mitchell and Wilson are simultaneously sidelined. Mitchell was limited to 11 games last season and Wilson has consistently been bitten by the injury bug. Having that many backs may seem superfluous, particularly when the 49ers also have a wide receiver in Deebo Samuel who has incentives in his contract tied to him maintaining his outstanding rushing production of 2021.īut in a year where the Niners may run the ball at an even higher rate following the switch to a quarterback of Lance’s dual-threat abilities, insurance at a position where San Francisco has frequently suffered injuries is critical.
San Francisco kept starter Elijah Mitchell, Jeff Wilson Jr, third-round rookie Tyrion Davis-Price, last year’s third-round pick Trey Sermon and undrafted rookie Jordan Mason on the active roster, giving the 49ers a plethora of options they can deploy as part of their frequently devastating ground attack.
Having five running backs on a 53-man roster – six if you count fullback Kyle Juszczyk – is the most stereotypically Kyle Shanahan thing Shanahan has ever done. By keeping the final pick in the 2022 draft on the active roster, they get to keep him on his rookie deal, rather than having to re-sign the former Iowa State star to a new contract to put him on the practice squad.Īfter this season the 49ers will still have another three years of Purdy on a cheap contract, and it seems they are pretty excited about that prospect. Shanahan said Purdy would have been Lance’s backup had the Garoppolo deal not come to fruition.
The fact Purdy achieved that feat is a clear indicator that the 49ers believe he can be a long-term backup once Garoppolo heads for pastures new next year. Yet it was tough to envision Purdy or Nate Sudfeld remaining on the roster once the Garoppolo news broke. He delivered the ball decisively and was not afraid to take ambitious shots downfield. Purdy enjoyed an impressive preseason in which he looked comfortable despite consistently having to deal with poor pass protection from backup offensive linemen. Nothing will top Monday’s stunning revelation that Garoppolo would be staying with the 49ers as Lance’s backup, but the fact rookie seventh-round pick Brock Purdy also gained a place on the 53 also raised plenty of eyebrows. Let’s examine those roster choices in a look at six key takeaways from cutdown day for San Francisco. 2 quarterback.īeyond that bet on the 49ers’ team chemistry, there were several other unexpected decisions that will not provoke the same level of reaction but could have more of an influence on the direction of the Niners this season. In true Shanahan fashion, the initial 53-man group has some surprises, the most significant being the decision to retain the services of Jimmy Garoppolo as the No. Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch have settled on the group they believe can deliver success in Trey Lance’s first season as the starting quarterback.
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