Photo credit: 49ers – Terrell Lloyd
Friday saw the 49ers return to Levi’s Stadium for as game-like a setting as there has been since their 37-20 trouncing of the Green Bay Packers on January 19. The seats, littered with cobwebs, having not been used since that game, were cordoned off and not yet filled with ads or fan cutouts like has been the case in Major League Baseball.
With head coach Kyle Shanahan unsure if he was permitted to use fake crowd noise (a truly bizarre statement), the team practiced mostly in silence after the first set of individual drills and opening 11-on-11s. Shanahan was at his best from a comedy standpoint, at one point calling a penalty on defensive coordinator Robert Saleh to get the Jimmy Garoppolo unit more reps (discernibly for Saleh standing on the field — as opposed to the rest of the offensive coaching staff, who were… also on the field), asking Fred Warner and the defense to tell the truth about who committed a real penalty, and pulling Trent Taylor off a punt return rep to have Dante Pettis (who fumbled a punt) take another rep.
Quarterbacks
- Jimmy Garoppolo: By my count, 16-of-28 and was would-be sacked at least four times, along with a safety from an erroneous, space-shuttle-launch-angled snap from Daniel Brunskill. That snap concluded the Garoppolo unit’s worst stretch of the day, in a drive starting at their 15-yard line. Garoppolo was pressured once, sacked once and the offense moved three total yards before the safety, leaving a visibly displeased Shanahan to “encourage” them off the field with some less-than-savory words. Garoppolo’s best throw came to Jordan Reed for his lone touchdown, a play after Jaquiski Tartt broke up a goal-line pass intended for Reed. His worst pass was an airmailed throw at least a few yards over the head of an open Dante Pettis down the right sideline. He did something similar when looking for a more tightly-covered Jauan Jennings a few plays later, though not as egregiously. He was underwhelming, but not exceedingly poor, and had to deal with receivers struggling to gain separation.
- Nick Mullens: Went 7-for-10 and had one interception, which was thrown behind Jennings and off his hand and into those of Jared Mayden‘s for a lengthy interception return. He connected with Tavon Austin twice and Chase Harrell three times.
- C.J. Beathard: Went 7-for-12 and a touchdown to Austin, who was open in acres of space on a coverage bust between Marcell and Tim Harris. He looked mostly reliable until launching deep passes poorly to end the day, going 0-for-3 to conclude practice vis-a-vis: a Jason Verrett PBU, an Ahkello Witherspoon near-interception and another Verrett PBU, this time ripped away from Reed over the middle.
Skill positions
- Raheem Mostert had a blistering opening to practice. After a backfield stop by Kerry Hyder on his first carry, he broke off for six yards on a screen, then 11 yards on a run, then concluded the drive with a 19-yard touchdown up the middle. He didn’t take many more snaps for the remainder of practice. He looks like the same, dominant Mostert who ended last season as the starter (via carries, he’s still never actually started a game, which is absurd).
- Josh Hokit has done an excellent job filling in for the hamstring-pulled Kyle Juszczyk, and looks like he’s a capable backup option. He’s physical and acts as a bruiser when he gets the ball in space. There’s no one-for-one replacing the most dynamic fullback in the league, but with a few more receptions Friday, Hokit proved (if he makes it to the practice squad) that the 49ers could have an insurance policy there. Shanahan commended him for continuing to take reps despite being exhausted.
- JaMycal Hasty sent the offense into a frenzy with a juke move over the middle of the field, but dropped an inch-perfect pass on a wheel route after beating Joe Walker. It seems likely he’ll be on the practice squad but get his chance if there’s an injury on the active roster.
- Chase Harrell: Harrell has been surprisingly reliable and was tied for the catch lead on the day, with five, on all five of his targets. He’s athletic, strong and continues to find himself in pockets of space.
- Dante Pettis: Pettis was targeted seven times on Friday, with three catches, though those incompletions were almost solely the result of poor passes or tight coverage. He did muff a punt at the start of practice and Shanahan had him rep multiple times. He made another strong-handed catch over the middle of the field.
- Tavon Austin: Austin, with J.J. Nelson gone, is looking exceedingly likely to make the roster, and provides the speed and odd versatility Shanahan likes, especially with Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk out. He caught five of his six targets on Friday, including a 38-yard touchdown reception from Beathard.
- Jordan Reed: Reed was targeted more than anyone on Friday, with five receptions on eight targets, one of which was a touchdown from Garoppolo. He had a pass broken up/ripped from him by Verrett to end practice, but he looked like the elite route runner he’s always been and has dealt with physicality well
Defense
- Solomon Thomas: He was absolutely dominant on Friday, coming up with two would-be sacks, one quarterback pressure and a backfield run stop. Playing mostly as a three-technique and quasi-nose, and about 15 pounds heavier, he looks like he’s finally making strides towards realizing his potential.
- Arik Armstead: Though he was limited early on, Armstead is brutalizing the offensive line. He is a serious problem. He had one sack, one quarterback pressure and a backfield run stop on Friday.
- Kevin Givens: Givens is part of that scary interior rotation, and has frequently been getting the better of Hroniss Grassu and the guard pairing of Tom Compton and Colton McKivitz. He had a would-be sack in 11-on-11s.
- Kentavius Street: Street, assuming he stays healthy, is going to wreak havok on guards this year. They don’t have much, if any tape to go off, and his college tape is from when he was strictly a defensive end. He is a bulldozer, effectively repping from the edge, three-technique and nose spots. He had a would-be sack and a run stop at the line of scrimmage.
- Kerry Hyder: Hyder looks like Ronald Blair 2.0. And Blair is on his way back (they need him, Dion Jordan is woefully ineffective). He had a pair of run stops, one behind the line of scrimmage, and one at it.
- Azeez Al-Shaair: This was his day, aside from a scare in which he was holding his stomach/rib. He had four run stops at the line of scrimmage and knocked a reception loose from Tevin Coleman with a hit on a short pass. Fred Warner was barely repped on Friday in order to, like Kittle, protect himself from himself.
- Dre Greenlaw: Greenlaw looks like he’s improving daily as a pass defender in terms of speedier play recognition and movement towards the ball. He had a pair of run stops at the line of scrimmage and a quick tackle on a very short pass play.
- Jason Verrett: Verrett was beaten by Harrell over the middle at least once, but he closed practice brilliantly, with a pair of pass breakups over the final three plays.
- Ahkello Witherspoon: From my perspective, Witherspoon looks like he’s regained his confidence and has been more impressive than Emmanuel Moseley. He had a near-interception the play after Verrett had a PBU.
Absences/Injuries:
- George Kittle did not participate in practice due to hamstring tightness with head coach Kyle Shanahan describing it as way to protect Kittle from himself.
- Ross Dwelley (foot) was out as expected, and is day-to-day.
- Ross Reynolds, who has a bone bruise, is out for a few weeks and will likely be on the team’s practice squad.
- J.J. Nelson was cut due to an injury which would have kept him out for about a month, and the team signed Kevin White and River Cracraft, who debuted in practice on Friday.
