The San Francisco 49ers have their 53-man roster set for the time-being, which means we can start to try and figure out who will be inactive on game day. In Jim Tomsula's conference call following roster cuts, he got several questions from Australian media as to whether or not Jarryd Hayne will be active. He is just one of several questions, but he is certainly a notable one.
I dropped the 53-man roster down below so people could start sorting through potential inactives. When it comes to the 46-man roster versatility is a big deal. We know there are certain starters who will not be playing special teams. That means reserves need to be able to handle some double duty. A backup who cannot contribute sufficiently on special teams is likely to end up as an inactive.
In looking through the roster, the potential inactives are a tough one to figure out. We don't know Tramaine Brock's status yet. The injury report will dictate that to a certain extent. For now, here's how I could see it shaking out:
RB Jarryd Hayne
WR DeAndrew White
OL Ian Silberman
OL Brandon Thomas
DT Mike Purcell
S Jaquiski Tartt
CB Shareece Wright
This was a lot tougher than I thought. You might be surprised I have both Hayne and White deactivated. Given that Bruce Ellington has the most return experience among that group, I think his versatility will give him a bigger opportunity. Hayne could still end up active given his improvement in punt and kick coverage, but for now, I'm leaning toward him sitting this first game.
I'm sure some are wondering what the heck with Jaquiski Tartt. My thought is that this first team will not feature nearly as much nickel as other games. The Vikings have a strong young quarterback in Teddy Bridgewater, but they are built around Adrian Peterson. I think Tartt's week-to-week status could depend on their opponent. I could see Tartt and Skov alternating active and inactive depending on the circumstances.
How do you see inactives shaking out later this week? We can also revisit this at the end of the week once we have a better handle on the injury report.
QB: Colin Kaepernick, Blaine Gabbert
RB: Carlos Hyde, Reggie Bush, Mike Davis, Jarryd Hayne
FB: Bruce Miller
TE: Vernon Davis, Vance McDonald, Garrett Celek, Blake Bell
WR: Anquan Boldin, Torrey Smith, Quinton Patton, Bruce Ellington, DeAndrew White
OL: Joe Staley, Alex Boone, Marcus Martin, Jordan Devey, Erik Pears, Ian Silberman, Nick Easton, Brandon Thomas, Trent Brown
DL: Glenn Dorsey, Ian Williams, Quinton Dial, Tank Carradine, Mike Purcell, Tony Jerod-Eddie, Arik Armstead
OLB: Ahmad Brooks, Aaron Lynch, Corey Lemonier, Eli Harold
ILB: NaVorro Bowman, Michael Wilhoite, Shayne Skov, Nick Bellore
CB: Tramaine Brock, Dontae Johnson, Keith Reaser, Kenneth Acker, Shareece Wright
FS: Eric Reid, Jimmie Ward, Jaquiski Tartt
SS: Antoine Bethea, L.J. McCray
P: Bradley Pinion
K: Phil Dawson
LS: Kyle Nelson