4 vital storylines to watch during Week 2 of 49ers OTAs
By Peter Panacy
49ers OTA storyline No. 2: Running back depth behind Christian McCaffrey
All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey was one of the standouts during the first week of OTAs, but that shouldn't exactly be a shocker.
After all, no one is physically tackling him, and he's an elite-level player going up against a hodgepodge of defenders being rotated from first string to second string, then back again.
McCaffrey's role is defined, though. The players behind him on the depth chart are the ones who'll be worth watching.
In case you forgot, the Niners' halfback roster is as follows:
- Ronald Awatt*
- Tyrion Davis-Price
- Khalan Laborn*
- Jordan Mason
- Christian McCaffrey
- Elijah Mitchell
*denotes rookie
San Francisco might keep four of those players, but the name who stands to lose the most is Davis-Price, the second-year pro who was a third-round selection a year ago but lost favor to the undrafted free agent, Jordan Mason.
Mason pushed out another third-round pick, Trey Sermon, from the 49ers roster last year, so it's safe to wonder if one of the Niners' 2023 UDFA rookies like Awatt or Laborn could do the same to Davis-Price.
Even though there's no contact, keep an eye on this position battle.