These 49ers youngsters could steal roster spots from established veterans

Darrell Luter Jr. over Ambry Thomas

And finally, we stop off at another busy position, that being cornerback.

The 49ers made a number of moves here in the offseason, signing free agents like Isaac Yiadom, Rock Ya-Sin, and Chase Lucas to opportunistic deals, while in the second round of the NFL Draft, they also added Florida State defensive back Renardo Green.

Assuming that some or all of those make the roster, one of the main battles is likely to come down to an ascending young player against a player who has bounced around various roles on the roster during his three years with the team.

Darrell Luter Jr. finally got his 49er career started at the back end of last season, appearing in seven games after missing the start of the season due to landing on the PUP list. It's difficult to know if Luter would've been able to make a bigger impact in his rookie year but for that injury. He was certainly drawing good reviews in camp, and given the struggles of Thomas and Isaiah Oliver in the early going, perhaps he could've drawn some more playing time if the 2023 rookie had been available.

Still, though, the fact he went straight into games following his activation at least says something about how the coaching staff viewed him, and Nick Sorensen, now the 49ers defensive coordinator, also spoke highly of him in June:

"I think with him, it stunk because we were excited for him really quick last year, when he got here, and then got injured pretty quickly. And then, when he came back, it was mid-season or later in the season, and then saw some flashes."

- Nick Sorensen, defensive coordinator

All of this should be ringing alarm bells in Thomas' ear. He already has a struggle to make the roster, considering the amount of players vying for spots and his own inconsistent play, but given that he has been on the fringes of the roster a number of times, continued development of seeming coaching staff favourites like Luter could certainly push him off the team.

To make matters worse, Thomas projects solely as an outside corner, having previously struggled at nickel, yet is behind at least Charvarius Ward and Deommodore Lenoir at those positions, as well as possibly the likes of Yiadom. Combined with the versatility of other options, particularly younger talent like Luter who has spent time playing both boundary (outside) and slot (inside) corner, this spells likely trouble for Thomas as the battle for positions begins to hot up.

What do you think about the battle between old and new for roster spots heading into the new season?

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