Niner Noise
FanSided

San Francisco 49ers: Early 53-man roster predictions for 2018

By Peter Panacy

SANTA CLARA, CA - DECEMBER 24: Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the San Francisco 49ers signalsto his team during their NFL game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Levi's Stadium on December 24, 2017 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Robert Reiners/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA - DECEMBER 24: Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the San Francisco 49ers signalsto his team during their NFL game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Levi's Stadium on December 24, 2017 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Robert Reiners/Getty Images) /
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SEATTLE, WA – SEPTEMBER 17: Kicker Robbie Gould #9 of the San Francisco 49ers scores a 37 yard field goal past the defense of cornerback Jeremy Lane #20 of the Seattle Seahawks and defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson #91 during the second quarter of the game at CenturyLink Field on September 17, 2017 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA – SEPTEMBER 17: Kicker Robbie Gould #9 of the San Francisco 49ers scores a 37 yard field goal past the defense of cornerback Jeremy Lane #20 of the Seattle Seahawks and defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson #91 during the second quarter of the game at CenturyLink Field on September 17, 2017 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images) /

Special Teams (3)

Kicker: Robbie Gould

Punter: Bradley Pinion

Long-Snapper: Kyle Nelson

Return duties may be the only point of interest for special teams this year, although we don’t include those players on this slide. They’ll be listed at their respective positions instead.

Although with a trio of return-eligible rookies competing for roster spots, kick- and punt-return specialists will be a camp competition to watch this offseason.

Veteran kicker Robbie Gould finished second in the NFL last season in field-goal percentage (95.1) and converted all but two of his extra-point attempts. There’s little reason to move on from him, and the Niners haven’t even brought aboard some offseason competition yet.

And while punter Bradley Pinion had a shaky start to his pro career, there’s no way No. 2 punter Jeff Locke shakes the former Clemson specialist from his roster spot.

We’ve said it before, no one knows long-snapper Kyle Nelson’s name. Let’s keep it that way.