Poor performances by these 49ers vs. Vikings could doom roster chances

The 49ers visit the Vikings for Week 2 of the preseason, and these players on the bubble are running out of chances to make the 53-man roster.

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has already parted ways with the first five players of the previous 90-man offseason roster with which he entered training camp.

Most of the cuts weren’t too shocking, aside from bidding farewell to veteran cornerback Darqueze Dennard, but there are far more moves to make in order to get the roster down to the final 53 who’ll comprise the Week 1 group.

Dennard was on the roster bubble anyway, yet he certainly wasn’t in the most jeopardy of being let go.

Now, the Niners are preparing for Week 2 of the 2022 preseason with a road matchup against the Minnesota Vikings. While Shanahan has already stated the bulk of his starters, including quarterback Trey Lance, aren’t likely to take the field in this exhibition bout, plenty of others on the fringe of the roster will have to play to showcase their value.

Dennard won’t get that chance. And when San Francisco prepares to cut five more players the Tuesday after this upcoming game, five more won’t get another final shot either.

As such, these four 49ers players need to make sure they’re on point during Saturday’s contest to ensure they’re not included on the second wave of roster cut-downs.

49ers offensive lineman Justin Skule

Reserve lineman Justin Skule had a rough go at it during training camp a year removed from tearing his ACL. And while some initial rust might have been expected, he wasn’t particularly great in limited action in Week 1 of the preseason against the Green Bay Packers, surrendering two pressures on 11 pass-blocking snaps.

And in joint practices against the Vikings, Skule wasn’t particularly impressive either, as Sports Illustrated’s Grant Cohn pointed out:

"Tried to block Za’Darius Smith during 1 on 1s, but Skule’s right leg slipped on the grass, so he did the splits and fell. This was the least athletic play of the day. Skule is hanging onto his roster spot by a thread."

The Niners’ depth along their offensive line is still a massive question mark, but it appears as if younger players like Jaylon Moore and Colton McKivitz have a leg up on Skule in the competition to take over a swing-tackle role.

49ers cornerback Ambry Thomas

Another player who struggled in camp and wasn’t particularly impressive versus the Packers, cornerback Ambry Thomas is probably a little safer in Skule, given the former’s third-round NFL Draft status from a year ago still warrants a bit of patience.

But, wow. It’s been ugly at times, including this one-on-one rep against Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen from joint practices:

The Niners have tried Thomas in press-man coverage this offseason, then backed him off to help him avoid giving up the big play.

Neither approach has worked with any sort of regularity.

Injuries at cornerback have helped keep Thomas relevant, but it’s pretty clear he’s on the deepest parts of the depth chart right now.

49ers tight end Ross Dwelley

Backup tight end Ross Dwelley has had a relatively quiet training camp and is coming off a year in which fellow tight end Charlie Woerner actually saw more offensive snaps than he did.

With Woerner coming off the physically unable-to-perform list ahead of Saturday’s game, the tight end room is a lot more crowded behind the All-Pro, George Kittle, who won’t suit up for the preseason bout.

Dwelley had one catch for 3 yards against Green Bay, whereas one of his primary competitors for a depth spot, Tanner Hudson, has made more splash plays in camp and came up with the game-winning touchdown over the Packers, too.

And with veteran tight end Tyler Kroft also in the mix, Dwelley will need a solid outing against Minnesota to avoid the risk of simply being the odd man out.

Read More: These Niners need to see more snaps in preseason vs. Vikings

49ers offensive lineman Keaton Sutherland

It feels weird to pick on a lineman who has very little chance of making the roster anyway. But with San Francisco missing veteran Daniel Brunskill (hamstring) and still trying to figure out the best solution at center, it was weird to see rookie Nick Zakelj actually getting some reps at center behind the presumed starter, Jake Brendel, during joint practices.

Keaton Sutherland, who has even less regular-season experience than the three-career-starts Brendel, figured to at least compete for a backup role.

Perhaps Zakelj has somehow overtaken Sutherland on the depth chart, which isn’t a good sign for the latter.

Sutherland saw 22 snaps in Week 1 of the preseason, so perhaps Zakelj getting some additional work here is merely a practice of “let’s see what he can do” and nothing more.

Still, if Sutherland wants to hang around, he’ll have to be more than just adequate when the 49ers and Vikings face off on Saturday, Aug. 20 at 7 p.m. ET.