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San Francisco 49ers: Starting Lineup Predictions for 2016 Season

By Trevor Irvine

Jun 8, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers linebackers huddle during minicamp at the San Francisco 49ers Practice Facility. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 8, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers linebackers huddle during minicamp at the San Francisco 49ers Practice Facility. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 6, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Torrey Smith (82) celebrates with San Francisco 49ers free safety Eric Reid (35) after he caught a 71-yard pass and scored a touchdown to beat the Chicago Bears 26-20 in overtime at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 6, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Torrey Smith (82) celebrates with San Francisco 49ers free safety Eric Reid (35) after he caught a 71-yard pass and scored a touchdown to beat the Chicago Bears 26-20 in overtime at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports /

Wide Receivers

Starting receivers – Torrey Smith, Eric Rogers

Slot receiver – Bruce Ellington

Third and fourth receivers (package specific) – DeAndre Smelter, Aaron Burbridge

Torrey Smith is the clear No. 1 receiver now that Anquan Boldin does not appear to be on the radar to return. After him, things get very muddled with a number of talented receivers on the current 90-man roster.

Bruce Ellington has had a monster offseason so far, and with his quickness and lateral ability he is the obvious person to take on the slot role.

Eric Rogers has experience playing in the Canadian League and at 6’3″, he has the size to present matchup problems for smaller cornerbacks. He is outstanding on jump balls showing terrific body control and strong hands to hold onto the ball when hit.

He is only going to get better and he seems like the logical man for the No. 2 receiver role.

DeAndre Smelter is coming back from his knee injury and is now fully healthy. He is a good route runner with the ability to catch the contested ball. Rookie Aaron Burbridge was drafted in the sixth-round of the draft and also shows an innate ability to catch the ball in traffic, and he fights hard to catch the ball no matter what pressure he is under.

There are other guys who could easily make the opening day squad, but they need to make large improvement over training camp to help their case — the main guys on the roster bubble are Quinton Patton and DeAndrew White.

Next: Defensive Line