The San Francisco 49ers just concluded the portion of their offseason that includes organized team activities (OTAs), and in light of perfect attendance for the second week, head coach Kyle Shanahan opted to cancel mandatory minicamp later in the month.
That means the Niners won't get back onto the field until training camp in mid-July, so the only conclusive performance-based analysis we have about the 2026 squad stems from, well... OTAs.
It's an imperfect analysis.
Padless OTAs are less about roster competition and more about installing plays and schemes, so it's nearly impossible to conclude much about roster battles, players on the fringes, etc. And only a handful of sessions are open to the media, too, meaning the observable takeaways are few and far between.
Thankfully, Sports Illustrated's Grant Cohn dished out some "good and not so good" performance reviews from the two days open to the press, and those will help make a good reference point.
The real winners and losers won't be determined until training camp, but let's overreact as much as we can and declare some OTA winners and losers anyway.
Winners and losers from 49ers' OTA sessions
Winner: RB Kaelon Black
Nearly everything coming in about rookie Kaelon Black has been positive, both from players and analysts, spitting in the face of the notion San Francisco reached hard on him in the draft last April.
Cohn's assessment of the third-round draftee, too, was pretty exemplary:
He's the most explosive running back on the team. More explosive than Jordan James, and more explosive than Christian McCaffrey, who didn't practice today. The 49ers haven't had a running back with Black's burst since Deebo Samuel was in his prime.
Black doesn't appear to be trending toward other 49ers failed Round 3 rushers.
Loser: RB Isaac Guerendo
On the polar opposite end of the spectrum, Isaac Guerendo tore his pectoral in a workout and won't be available until the end of training camp.
That's not good, considering Guerendo needed to prove himself in the wake of Black's arrival and after being effectively iced out of the Niners offense last year, but all of that will be delayed now.
If there is a saving grace for the injury, San Francisco might opt to shelve the 2024 draftee on an injury list to open up the season, delaying any transaction that would see him off the team.
Winner: WR Jacob Cowing
Jacob Cowing might be in the lead for the 49ers' open punt-return job by default, which is a bonus, but Cohn also circled the third-year receiver as one of the practices' bigger standouts, including a touchdown reception off the hand of quarterback Brock Purdy where Cowing blew past cornerback Darrell Luter Jr.
Cowing is locked in a battle for one of only a couple of spots at the bottom of the wide receiver depth chart, so any positives here for him are good.
Loser: S Marques Sigle
Second-year defensive back Marques Sigle is less of a loser because of practices and more because of the addition of veteran safety Ashtyn Davis, who'll be a prime threat to take over a free safety job—a role Sigle could have easily seized.
With Malik Mustapha and Ji'Ayir Brown performing better at in-the-box roles, Sigle's path toward claiming a first-team gig just got far more complex with Davis in town.
Winner: WR De'Zhaun Stribling
Cohn called out the Niners' top pick from last April for a lackluster showing in the first week of OTAs, but De'Zhaun Stribling bounced back nicely with some speed to show in Week 2, as Cohn pointed out:
Caught two deep passes -- one up the left sideline in the hole of the 49ers' Cover 2 defense, and the other was a deep pass down the middle. On the second one, Stribling ran a post route and burned backup nickelback Nate Hobbs. Stribling clearly is a deep threat, similar to Jordan Watkins except taller.
Stribling is already an established perimeter blocker, and his speed might be the key element San Francisco uses to stretch the field for its more sure-handed receivers underneath.
Loser: WR Christian Kirk
Cohn was not a fan of the veteran, Christian Kirk, who apparently dropped two passes in the first media-observed practice before missing the second practice the press attended, and it's unclear why.
Perhaps the well-traveled Kirk is saving his best for camp, but it's anyone's guess at this point.
Winner: WR Demarcus Robinson
Lots of offensive players on this list here, considering the lack of contact pretty much sets up that side of the ball for success during OTAs.
At any rate, Demarcus Robinson is another member of that back-end-of-the-WR-room competition that'll be pretty heated, and the veteran made a positive impact by catching passes in traffic, per Cohn:
Made two big catches over the middle. Both times, he ran dig routes and caught the ball in stride with zero fear or hesitation, just the way Jauan Jennings used to do. It would be nice to see Evans, Stribling and Pearsall do that, too. For now, Robinson clearly is the 49ers' go-to guy in the receiver room when it comes to catching passes in traffic.
Aside from a standout performance in the Wild Card win over the Philadelphia Eagles last January, Robinson was mostly a non-factor for the 49ers offense a year ago.
Now, it appears as if he fully understands his roster spot is in some serious jeopardy, and Robinson is responding with some needed desperation.
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