49ers updated roster bubble watch after 2021 OTAs

49ers Bubble Watch: Special Teams

Lock: Robbie Gould, Taybor Pepper, Mitch Wishnowsky

Strong Bubble: None

Weak Bubble: None

Long Shot: None

There essentially isn’t any drama with San Francisco’s specialists.

Typically, teams bring in a reserve punter and/or kicker to guard against any preseason injuries to the projected starters, but the 49ers have elected not to do this in this particular case. And that’s fine.

Kicker Robbie Gould, long-snapper Taybor Pepper and punter Mitch Wishnowsky are all under contract through 2022, and there’s no reason to shake things up here unless one of the players suffers a complete meltdown during training camp.

If there’s going to be any drama with this particular unit, though, it’ll be in the return game where the 49ers still haven’t got a clear-cut answer as to who’ll return kickoffs and punts. Is it going to be a wide receiver like Richie James or even Brandon Aiyuk? Or could a rookie assume that role, perhaps someone like cornerback Ambry Thomas?

For players buried deeper on the depth chart, being a quality return specialist could go a long way towards ensuring a spot on the 53-man roster.