San Francisco 49ers: 5 players who’ll lose starting jobs in 2019

The San Francisco 49ers received a lot of regression from second-year players and others in 2018, meaning a number of keystone starters might not get that role next year. Here are five who could be demoted.

There are many factors that have contributed to the San Francisco 49ers‘ 2-8 start to the 2018 season — a year in which the Niners were expected to at least compete for a playoff berth.

Injuries have been a massive factor. Just think, head coach Kyle Shanahan’s squad lost running back Jerick McKinnon before the regular season even began. And quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was lost in Week 3.

And those are just a few of the setbacks.

There have been plenty of other problems, though. More than a handful of the promising, young players general manager John Lynch brought aboard in the 2017 NFL Draft have regressed. Others, who were supposed to be key role players this season also haven’t performed up to par.

All told, these issues have revealed the team’s rebuild is nowhere close to being as far along as initially thought.

That means upgrades are needed. But with upgrades come the downgrades. And there are going to be more than a few players seeing lesser roles when 2019 roles around.

Here are five.

No. 5: Safety Adrian Colbert

Second-year safety Adrian Colbert landing on injured reserve with a high-ankle sprain might have actually been a blessing for the 49ers defense this season.

Before his setback in Week 7 against the Los Angeles Rams, Colbert actually ended up ranking the worst starting safety in the NFL up to that point, according to Pro Football Focus (h/t Brad Almquist of KNBR 680). Colbert had a 31.7 overall grade on the year before his injury.

The Niners eventually settled on veteran defensive back Jimmie Ward to fill the void. Ward, who is playing on his fifth-year option, probably won’t be back with San Francisco in 2019.

Unfortunately, Colbert never displayed the rangy, hard-hitting ways that earned him the starting free safety job in the latter half of his rookie deal. Instead, he became known for bad angles and missed tackles.

Considering how important a free safety is in defensive coordinator Robert Saleh’s Cover 3 scheme, one would think an upgrade over Colbert would be a high priority.