The San Francisco 49ers kick off organized team activities this week, the first time fans will get a glimpse of the (mostly) entire 90-man offseason roster all practicing together.
Of course, head coach Kyle Shanahan has repeatedly stressed how these padless OTA practices don't actually count in full-blown roster competition; that'll happen in training camp and the preseason.
Nevertheless, there'll be plenty of takeaways when players start gracing the field on Wednesday, May 27.
For the most part, Shanahan's offensive cast of starters is set. San Francisco entered the offseason with only two glaring questions on that side of the ball: addressing the wide receiver room and figuring out who starts at left guard. And, for the most part, both questions were at least addressed, if not answered outright.
Since it's the offseason, and there's no better time for optimized guesswork, let's take a stab at predicting how the offensive starting lineup would go (using a common 11-personnel format).
49ers offensive starter predictions, pre-OTA edition
Quarterback: Brock Purdy
No questions here. Purdy is the 49ers' new figurehead and will be expected to drive the offense significantly more this season than his injury-plagued 2025 efforts.
Running back: Christian McCaffrey
A tip of the cap to fullback Kyle Juszczyk, but a three-wide receiver crop ensures McCaffrey will likely see plenty of single-back sets this season. Considering CMC led the NFL with 413 touches last year, the Niners probably want to avoid a repeat of the injury-riddled 2024 campaign by giving more attention to second-year tailback Jordan James and rookie Kaelon Black.
It's still the McCaffrey show, though.
Wide receiver: Mike Evans, Ricky Pearsall, Christian Kirk
As long as everyone stays healthy, San Francisco's top pick from last April's draft, De'Zhaun Stribling, probably won't see much of the field in year one. The problem, though, is the wide receiver room has plenty of injury concerns, primarily centering around Evans and Pearsall, both of whom missed significant time a year ago.
When healthy, though, Evans is a shoo-in to have 1,000 yard receiving, and Pearsall is starting to feel the heat after two years of inconsistent availability.
Offensive line (L to R): Trent Williams, Robert Jones, Jake Brendel, Dominick Puni, Colton McKivitz
The 49ers tossed several assets at the O-line this offseason after then-rookie Connor Colby didn't quite cut it a year ago, and while there's no clear-cut defined starter at left guard, there are plenty of options.
Rookie Carver Willis is getting plenty of buzz already and could easily be in the mix to start, not unlike how Puni took over the starting gig right out of the gate back in 2024. Yet the Niners tend to favor veterans, and Jones has a major leg up in that regard.
It wouldn't be a surprise if San Francisco opted to platoon Jones and Willis at left guard, not unlike how they handled former interior linemen, Spencer Burford and Jon Feliciano, a few years back.
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