49ers training camp: 3 early challenges facing San Francisco

In an offseason like no other, the 49ers haven’t been immune to some of the challenges teams are facing in training camp, yet these three are unique.

The San Francisco 49ers are fortunate in a number of regards as they prepare for their 2020 training camp.

For starters, no player on the 80-man offseason roster has opted out in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, and general manager John Lynch reiterated to the media he didn’t think anyone was planning on doing so anyway. One eventually did, wide receiver Travis Benjamin, yet he might not have made the 53-man roster anyway.

Additionally, only two players had been placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list: wide receiver Richie James and running back Jeff Wilson Jr. Without getting into the specifics, it could have been a lot worse considering many of the team’s players spent the offseason working out together.

On top of that, cornerback Richard Sheman told reporters the Niners could handle the pandemic relatively well given the team’s location in the south Bay Area.

“I think on a team like ours, we’re uniquely constructed to deal with this because obviously we’re in Santa Clara,” Sherman said. “There’s not a huge nightlife. It’s not like we’re in Atlanta or Texas or Miami or Las Vegas or LA, where there’s a lot of distractions, a lot of places you can go, a lot of things you can do to get yourself in trouble.”

At the same time, however, San Francisco is going to face some unique and challenging difficulties during training camp this year. Many of these are specific to the team, whether they are due to offseason injuries, new faces in a complex system or whatever. True, other teams deal with similar situations, too. But the 49ers are unique in operating one of the most complex offenses in the league while also being pressed to find some cheap, reliable depth options for the 53-man roster.

Training camp this year could reveal these three specific challenges early for head coach Kyle Shanahan and Co.