San Francisco 49ers: Predicting Post-OTA Starting Lineups

5 of 9

Nov 29, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers tight end Vance McDonald (89) runs in for a touchdown against Arizona Cardinals free safety Rashad Johnson (26) during the third quarter at Levi’s Stadium. The Arizona Cardinals defeated the San Francisco 49ers 19-13. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /

Tight Ends

While Bruce Miller is doing well in his transition to a new position, he’s likely to be a secondary move tight end and special teams player rather than really featuring in the starting competition. Miller was the first on the field in 11-on-11 drills, so don’t count him out entirely, but I feel he’ll be used more as a regular role player rather than an every down starter in 2016.

That leaves Garrett Celek and Vance McDonald splitting the first team snaps at the moment. They’re really not directly competing with one another, however; Celek is more of a blocker, while McDonald, theoretically, is better at receiving. In reality, McDonald’s had issues with drops while Celek took a step forward as a receiver last season. I still have McDonald as the starter in passing situations, with Celek getting plenty of playing time in Kelly’s two-tight end sets, but this is another position where we’ll have to see players in pads before we can really make a strong statement, one way or another.

Next: Offensive Line