49ers: Showing faith in the few who remain from ’16, when team hit bottom with 2 wins
If 49ers general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan have yet to release, waive, trade or decline to re-sign a player they inherited, there’s probably a reason for it.
Since taking over the 49ers’ football side 17 months ago, the two have purged the 49ers’ roster of all but 13 players who were part of a two-win season in 2016. Those 13 survivors remain employed because Lynch and Shanahan:
Recognize talent (Joe Staley, DeForest Buckner); Believe unfulfilled potential could be realized (Arik Armstead, Joshua Garnett). Value versatility ( Jimmie Ward) or special-teams skill (Raheem Mostert, Aaron Burbridge).
Also, a few might have benefited from playing a position of need that Lynch and Shanahan have yet to adequately address (Eli Harold).
In The Chronicle’s 53-man roster projection before the 49ers report to training camp Wednesday, each of the holdovers is forecast to survive final roster cuts.
The reasoning: Those players are still here for a reason.
49ers’ roster projections OFFENSE
Quarterback (2): Jimmy Garoppolo, C.J. Beathard
With apologies to Brian Hoyer, what a difference a year makes. Shanahan prefers to keep just two QBs on the roster, but Nick Mullens could spend a second year on the practice squad. Running back (4): Jerick McKinnon, Matt Breida, Joe Williams, Raheem Mostert*
Shanahan convinced Lynch to draft Williams in 2017 amid questions about his commitment … and then Shanahan noted this spring that Williams needed to have more “urgency” in his second season. Translation: Williams, who spent last year on injured reserve with an ankle issue, isn’t a roster lock. Fullback (1): Kyle Juszczyk
Confident about this projection. Juszczyk’s $21 million contract is proof the NFL fullback isn’t quite extinct. Wide receiver (6): Pierre Garcon, Marquise Goodwin, Trent Taylor, Dante Pettis, Kendrick Bourne, Aaron Burbridge*
The addition of Pettis, a secondround pick, is bad news for Aldrick Robinson, who will turn 30 in September and had a quiet 19-catch debut season with the 49ers in 2017. Burbridge’s special-teams ability should allow him to beat out Richie James, an intriguing but undersized seventhround pick who had two broken collarbones in college. Tight end (3): George Kittle, Garrett Celek*, Cole Hikutini
Could the 49ers open the season with just two tight ends? That’s highly unlikely, but Hikutini will need to prove he can provide value at this depthstarved position. His only competition for the third tight-end spot are Cole Wick and undrafted rookie Ross Dwelley. Offensive line (8): T Joe Staley*, T Mike McGlinchey, C Weston Richburg, G Laken Tomlinson, G Joshua Garnett*, G Jonathan Cooper, G/C Erik Magnuson, T Garry Gilliam
Darrell Williams Jr., 25, is an intriguing tackle prospect, but the 49ers’ decision to give Gilliam a two-year extension in February with more than $2 million guaranteed suggests Williams is ticketed for another season on the practice squad (if he’s not claimed off waivers). Magnuson, who played emergency tackle last year, could compete with fellow jack-of-all-trades lineman Mike Person for a roster spot. It benefits Magnuson, 24, that he’s six years younger. Cooper and Garnett will vie for a starting spot, with the loser not guaranteed to stay.
DEFENSE
Defensive line (7): Arik Armstead*, DeForest Buckner*, Solomon Thomas, Earl Mitchell, D.J. Jones, Sheldon Day, Ronald Blair*
The 49ers didn’t add much competition to this well-stocked spot in the offseason. Fourth-round pick Kentavius Street (torn ACL) will spend the season on IR; and raw seventh-rounder Jullian Taylor is a classic practicesquad candidate. Taylor didn’t play organized football until his senior year of high school and played in just 15 games in four seasons at Temple. Outside linebacker (5): Jeremiah Attaochu, Eli Harold*, Cassius Marsh, Dekoda Watson, Pita Taumoepenu
Will a capable pass-rusher please assert himself? Watson is known for his special-teams ability, but the 49ers are hoping at least one of the remaining four players, none of whom has more than 10 career sacks, can take a big step in 2018 at a position where pressuring QBs is the primary responsibility. Taumoepenu, a 2017 sixth-round pick, was a healthy scratch for 14 games in his rookie season. Inside linebacker (5): Reuben Foster, Malcolm Smith, Fred Warner, Brock Coyle, Korey Toomer
Foster will open the season by serving a two-game suspension, meaning Warner, a third-round pick, figures to get immediate playing time and could push Smith for snaps when Foster returns. The 49ers could keep just four at this position, but both Coyle and Toomer provide strong special-teams value. Cornerback (6): Richard Sherman, Ahkello Witherspoon, Jimmie Ward*, K’Waun Williams, D.J. Reed, Tarvarius Moore
This appears straightforward as the 49ers will keep draft picks Moore (third round) and Reed (fifth). Ward’s versatility — he’s also a capable safety — could allow the 49ers to keep another at this position, and Tyvis Powell, Greg Mabin and Tarvarus McFadden are next in line. Safety (3): Jaquiski Tartt*, Adrian Colbert, Marcell Harris
The 49ers can keep just three at this position because Ward can play this spot if Tartt or Colbert is sidelined. Harris, a sixth-round pick, is returning from a torn Achilles he sustained last year before his final season at Florida. SPECIALISTS (3): K Robbie Gould, P Bradley Pinion*, LS Kyle Nelson*
Pinion, a 2015 fifth-round pick, is one of nine draft picks made by Trent Baalke who remains on the roster.