Niner Noise
FanSided

San Francisco 49ers: Speculating the biggest position battles in 2018 training camp

By Peter Panacy

SANTA CLARA, CA - JULY 30: Ronald Johnson #88 of the San Francisco 49ers catches a pass over Tramaine Brock #26 during practice at the San Francisco 49ers training facility on July 30, 2011 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA - JULY 30: Ronald Johnson #88 of the San Francisco 49ers catches a pass over Tramaine Brock #26 during practice at the San Francisco 49ers training facility on July 30, 2011 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 6
Next
SANTA CLARA, CA – DECEMBER 11: Jimmie Ward #25 of the San Francisco 49ers intercepts a pass intended for Quincy Enunwa #81 of the New York Jets in the first quarter of their NFL game at Levi’s Stadium on December 11, 2016 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA – DECEMBER 11: Jimmie Ward #25 of the San Francisco 49ers intercepts a pass intended for Quincy Enunwa #81 of the New York Jets in the first quarter of their NFL game at Levi’s Stadium on December 11, 2016 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

No. 3: Free Safety

The 49ers appear set at strong safety with Jaquiski Tartt, he being the reason the Niners were comfortable letting veteran Eric Reid walk in free agency.

Free safety is a bit more intriguing, though.

San Francisco has two starting-caliber defensive backs here — Jimmie Ward and Adrian Colbert. Ward, a 2014 first-round pick, is playing on his fifth-year option, which is fully guaranteed at the start of the league’s new year. The problem, however, is Ward has landed on season-ending injured reserve in three of his first four seasons at the pro level.

When this happened last year, Colbert did more than just fill in. According to Pro Football Focus, Colbert’s overall 77.6 grade easily bested Ward’s 46.9 mark.

Based off that alone, Colbert appears to be the shoo-in.

But it’s not that simple. We’ve yet to see a fully healthy Ward operate in coordinator Robert Saleh’s Cover 3, single-high defense over the course of an elongated stretch. Plus, Ward has versatility to bump down into either an outside or nickel corner.

He’ll stay on the roster, for sure. But the safety camp battle will still be one worth watching.