49ers roster: Predicting 3 backups who see most field time in 2021
By Peter Panacy
No. 3: 49ers Offensive Lineman Daniel Brunskill
Last year, the 49ers attempted to give versatile offensive lineman Daniel Brunskill the starting right guard spot. In the wake of multiple injuries to some of the Niners’ options at center, though, Brunskill was asked to move over and become the team’s primary snapper.
A fourth-string option. That’s just how bad the situation became, injury-wise.
San Francisco intends to make its second-round NFL Draft pick, Notre Dame offensive guard Aaron Banks, the starter at right guard this season. While it’s not guaranteed, and Banks will be competing with Brunskill for the rights to start, the ideal scenario would be for Banks to win the competition, thereby allowing Brunskill to revert back to a high-quality all-encompassing backup to support multiple positions along the offensive line.
Last season, Brunskill played 99 percent of the team’s offensive snaps, which would be indicative of starting-type numbers, of course.
If the 49ers stay relatively healthy along the O-line, though, Brunskill should wind up getting closer to the 45 percent of offensive snaps he played back in 2019 — a year in which the Niners suffered a much more average number of O-line injuries instead of the swarm of them endured last year.
Still, it’s a fairly high number, and San Francisco would prefer if Brunskill saw even less field time, perhaps around 30 percent, while still counting on his useful serviceability.