49ers vs. Raiders: 5 Niners who must start 2023 preseason hot

With training camp essentially done and dusted for the 49ers, the preaseason will kickoff in earnest when San Francisco travels to Las Vegas to take on the Raiders for both teams' preseason opener.

Things will actually start with a series of joint practices this weekend at the Raiders' training facility in Henderson, Nevada, which 49ers' head coach Kyle Shanahan views as the more important part of the trip since he doesn't plan on playing any of his starters during the game at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

But seeing as most of the camp battles for spots on the final 53-man roster that will be announced at the end of August are for those backup/depth spots, the practices and the game will mean a lot to those players on the fringe of making the team or who want to showcase their abilities in order to earn a higher spot on the depth chart.

So while we don't know exactly who will get playing time on Sunday, there are some players who need to take advantage of what opportunities they do get as they fight for those roster spots and roles heading into the regular season opener on Sept. 10 against the Steelers.

With that in mind, let's look at five players who need to really show out in the preseason opener against the Raiders.