Niner Noise
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5 bold predictions for the 49ers 53-man roster in 2019

By Peter Panacy

SANTA CLARA, CA - OCTOBER 21: Adrian Colbert #27 and Ahkello Witherspoon #23 of the San Francisco 49ers attempt to intercept a pass intended for Brandin Cooks #12 of the Los Angeles Rams during their NFL game at Levi's Stadium on October 21, 2018 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA - OCTOBER 21: Adrian Colbert #27 and Ahkello Witherspoon #23 of the San Francisco 49ers attempt to intercept a pass intended for Brandin Cooks #12 of the Los Angeles Rams during their NFL game at Levi's Stadium on October 21, 2018 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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LANDOVER, MD – OCTOBER 15: Head coach Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers looks on from the sideline as they play the Washington Redskins during the second half at FedExField on October 15, 2017 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD – OCTOBER 15: Head coach Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers looks on from the sideline as they play the Washington Redskins during the second half at FedExField on October 15, 2017 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

The San Francisco 49ers still have three more preseason games and a slew of practices to determine the 53-man roster to start 2019, yet here are five bold predictions for it.

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan still has a ways to go before making the final decisions on which players end up comprising the regular-season 53-man roster come Week 1.

Hopefully there won’t be too many injuries factoring into Shanahan’s decision-making process, although the Niners are already dealing with the injury bug a bit just over one week into the 2019 preseason.

Yet guarding against injuries is always something any coaching staff has to take into account. Likewise, there are often late risers and performances which can change how the back end of any roster or depth chart shakes up.

San Francisco hits the road for it’s next preseason game against the Denver Broncos this Monday, followed by another exhibition tuneup on the road against the Kansas City Chiefs on Aug. 24. The 49ers’ final preseason bout, Aug. 29 against the Los Angeles Chargers, is easily the least meaningful of the bunch.

But there could be a handful of roster spots left up for grabs, and that game could go a long way in determining who winds up making the cut.

Whatever the cases may be, many a 53-man roster prediction winds up being wrong by the time final cuts are announced. And while there’s good evidence to suggest the vast majority of predictions will be correct, there’s always a few exceptions and surprises.

Let’s focus on those, as Niner Noise breaks down five bold predictions for Shanahan’s first 53-man roster of the 2019 season.