Niner Noise
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San Francisco 49ers: Biggest winners and losers from first week of training camp 2018

By Peter Panacy

SANTA CLARA, CA - MAY 11: LaMichael James #23 of the San Francisco 49ers carries the ball running away from Michael Wilhoite #57 during Rookie Minincamp at the San Francisco 49ers practice facility on May 11, 2012 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA - MAY 11: LaMichael James #23 of the San Francisco 49ers carries the ball running away from Michael Wilhoite #57 during Rookie Minincamp at the San Francisco 49ers practice facility on May 11, 2012 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – OCTOBER 29: Matt Breida #22 of the San Francisco 49ers makes the catch and carries the ball in the second half against the Philadelphia Eagles on October 29, 2017 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – OCTOBER 29: Matt Breida #22 of the San Francisco 49ers makes the catch and carries the ball in the second half against the Philadelphia Eagles on October 29, 2017 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

Niner Noise recaps the first full week of San Francisco 49ers training camp in 2018 and sees which players and units excelled and which ones weren’t so impressive.

The first week of San Francisco 49ers training camp for 2018 is in the books, and it’s always refreshing to think the regular season is now just over a month away.

Extended time off usually means there’s a lot of the proverbial rust to shake off from both players and units. Some of that was apparent early on during Niners camp, particularly on day one (Thursday, July 26), when the defense seemed to get the better of the offense.

On day two, though, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and the offense bounced back nicely, which is a good indication head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense is starting to click.

All the inter-team competition means there are inevitably winners and losers, however, and the opening week of training camp is no different. A number of players certainly stood out, while others appear to be a bit behind.

So with the first week now complete, here are the 49ers’ biggest winners and losers from the first four days of practice.

Winner: Running Back Matt Breida

Second-year running back Matt Breida has been impressing at camp. The former Georgia Southern tailback, who was third on the Niners in all-purpose yards last year (645), caught the eye of Niner Noise’s own Aaron Tan on Friday:

"Breida was consistently juking out the defense and making big plays on offense. He was heavily involved in both the run and pass game. If Breida continues to make strides in improving himself as a running back, I could see Shanahan scaling down No. 1 tailback Jerick McKinnon‘s reps and turning McKinnon and Breida into a Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman two-headed backfield back as Shanahan did with the Atlanta Falcons not long ago."

There shouldn’t be any threat from Breida to McKinnon’s featured role. But what Tan eluded to is the fact Shanahan loves the dual-back approach and will look to replicate that in San Francisco.

As long as Breida maintains this pace, there’s an excellent chance that’s what we’ll see happen with he and McKinnon this season.