With the San Francisco 49ers wrapping up their 2019 installment of OTAs this week, Niner Noise looks at five players who have now been pushed onto the roster bubble.
The first three weeks of San Francisco 49ers organized team activities (OTAs) are complete, and the team will begin preparations for mandatory minicamp, then training camp in late July.
OTAs are interesting things, as these first practices aren’t mandatory, and it’s not uncommon to see a number of veterans and slightly injured players held out of these padless practices. Additionally, the media is only allowed to attend one practice per week, so it’s even tougher to truly gauge which players are rising or falling on the 90-man offseason roster and depth chart.
Plenty of those players have close to zero chance making the Niners’ 53-man roster in 2019. Roughly a third are mere camp invites, and between 20 to 30 more are on the bubble.
This slideshow focuses on the latter group.
In particular, let’s take a look at five players who were pushed onto the roster bubble during OTAs. It could be due to other players making headway, potential absences from practice or any combination of other factors.
Either way, these five will need strong training camps to recapture their best chances to stick around in September.
No. 4: Wide Receiver Richie James
Second-year wide receiver Richie James entered OTAs already on the roster bubble, yet OTA circumstances didn’t exactly do him any favors.
His special teams abilities last year arguably could have kept him off the bubble, particularly in kickoff returns, yet James figures to be one of a number of players competing for a starting slot role this season. Even with the struggles San Francisco endured at this position last year, James was scantly used on the offensive side of the ball and was targeted a mere 12 times over 13 games.
By multiple OTA accounts, newly signed veteran wide receiver Jordan Matthews, who offers a bigger option in the slot, put on something of a show during practices and honed some chemistry with quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
Matthews’ OTA efforts might be enough to keep him off the bubble, for now, which means another receiver on the 49ers’ crowded depth chart has to fall down on it.
James is squarely in that category now.
No. 4: Linebacker Elijah Lee
A year ago, veteran linebacker Malcolm Smith lost a starting job late in the season to backup linebacker Elijah Lee, who ended up starting five games to close out 2018. Lee performed admirably well in that stead, too, which possibly influenced the 49ers’ renegotiation of Smith’s contract to a one-year deal during the offseason.
That was before San Francisco brought in free-agent wide receiver Kwon Alexander and subsequently drafted Arkansas’ Dre Greenlaw, however.
Both Alexander (knee) and second-year backer Fred Warner (knee) didn’t participate in OTAs and likely won’t see practice time until training camp, so the injury concerns likely keep Lee safe.
For now.
The thing, though, is the Niners worked Smith with the first-team linebackers during OTAs. And San Francisco’s defensive switch to a wide-9 alignment means the strong-side linebacker can now play the traditional “stack” linebacker role, meaning all three backers are much more interchangeable.
This benefits Smith, who seems to hold the favor over Lee, despite the latter’s strong finish to 2018.
No. 3: Tight End Garrett Celek
Veteran tight end Garrett Celek might have been on the fringes of the roster bubble by OTAs already, particularly after having more accepted penalties against him last year (six) than receptions (five).
Especially after the 49ers brought aboard Stanford tight end Kaden Smith in the NFL Draft, then picking up veteran tight end Levine Toilolo as a free agent.
Toilolo is a superior blocker to Celek, and Smith offers more upside as a pass-catching weapon. Yet OTAs revealed a major setback to Celek’s chances to make the 53-man roster.
Likely in Week 16, Celek suffered a concussion, which kept him off the active list in Week 17 to close out the season. Yet Celek missed OTAs while continuing to go through the concussion protocol.
While it makes more than enough sense to keep him safe from additional head injuries, Celek’s absence doesn’t help him in this competition at all.
Instead, Toilolo and Smith will get far more looks between now and the start of training camp, pushing Celek even further onto the periphery.
No. 2: Offensive Guard Joshua Garnett
Lingering 2018 injuries to a couple of players along the interior of the 49ers offensive line helped keep former first-round NFL Draft pick, offensive guard Joshua Garnett, somewhat safe on the roster bubble heading into OTAs.
Namely knee injuries to left guard Laken Tomlinson and center Weston Richburg.
Garnett served as the primary backup last year, seeing action when Tomlinson went down in Week 17. But Tomlinson was able to return from his MCL sprain and was working with the first-team unit.
That doesn’t bode well for Garnett.
Neither does the fact Richburg, while being out, saw his first-team reps go to journeyman lineman Ben Garland, who has prior experience working under head coach Kyle Shanahan. Garnett wouldn’t take snaps at center, of course, but it’s looking as if Garland is on pace to take up one of the backup interior spots after training camp.
Shanahan could have, feasibly, put right guard Mike Person at center — a position he’s played before — and then give Garnett some reps in Person’s void.
It didn’t happen, though, meaning Garnett is squarely on the bubble now. And perhaps on the weaker side.
No. 1: Wide Receiver Kendrick Bourne
Imagine this: San Francisco’s leading wide receiver from 2018 has now been pushed onto the roster bubble.
Kendrick Bourne led all Niners wideouts last season with 487 yards. While impressive for a former undrafted free agent, the number essentially illustrates why the 49ers made so many moves to upgrade the position during the offseason.
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Bourne was pushed onto the roster bubble primarily due to the impressive OTA performances by Jordan Matthews. During one particular practice, according to The Athletic’s David Lombardi, Bourne appeared to strike back with some eye-popping plays of his own.
At least Bourne is putting up a fight, which is what the coaches will want to see.
Still, it’s likely the Niners keep just one player between Bourne and Matthews this season. Both occupy similar roles and can serve as red-zone options, yet Matthews’ experience working out of the slot gives him a slight edge.
So do the reports Matthews made more of those eye-popping plays during OTAs than his primary competition.
Training camp will be a bigger determining factor, of course, but the pecking order is becoming a bit more clear than it was this time a month ago.