49ers: 3 players Niners already wish they didn’t get rid of
By Peter Panacy
49ers Missed Player No. 3: Wide Receiver Nsimba Webster
The 49ers could be missing cornerbacks. But the only players let go for this position at roster-cut time were Alexander Myers and Dontae Johnson, the latter coming back on the practice squad. Plus, the free-agent signings of Josh Norman and Dre Kirkpatrick help alleviate the loss of Verrett to a certain extent.
Return specialists aren’t exactly considered highly sought-after commodities, certainly not in recent Niners history. Yet the return game is already proving to be a bit of a challenge for San Francisco over two weeks.
On kickoffs, the 49ers are averaging only 16.2 yards per return, which ranks 27th overall in the league. The Niners are notably better on punt returns, averaging 10.3 yards per return (11th), but there’s been a rotating door of return specialists like wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Mohamed Sanu, among others.
It would have been nice if the Niners simply solidified the position entering 2021, and that’s where now-Chicago Bears wide receiver/return specialist Nsimba Webster would have come into play.
Webster recorded 89 yards on four kickoff returns for San Francisco during the preseason. And while preseason narratives apply, he likely could have provided that spark to help improve the 49ers’ starting field position in 2021.