49ers snap count vs. Broncos: Second string offensive line, Marcus Cromartie top list

The San Francisco 49ers have a second preseason game under their belts, and we’ve got another snap count. It can be difficult assessing who is doing what when 1st, 2nd, and 3rd team offensive and defensive units are moving in and out of the lineup. However, tracking the depth chart through the snap count provides some value as we consider the 53-man roster.

We’ll go into more detail on a few of these groups, but one that was interesting was the offensive line. The second string line got the most snaps, including left tackle Erik Pears, left guard Joshua Garnett, center Marcus Martin, and right tackle Anthony Davis. Brandon Thomas was the second team right guard after spending much of the last couple weeks with the third string. However, he split second team right guard snaps with Ian Silberman. While the four second teamers got 36 snaps, Thomas got 16 and Silberman got 20.

The team continues to give Aaron Burbridge a lot of work. He had 32 snaps last week and 25 this week. He got his first reception on Saturday, finishing with two for seven yards. None of the young receivers are really standing out at this point, so it is hard to really tell who is going to grab the handful of spots open alongside Torrey Smith, Quinton Patton, and Bruce Ellington. Even though Ellington did not play Saturday, I still see him on the roster.

Marcus Cromartie led the defense in snaps for the second straight week. He is getting a lot of special teams work to go with that as well. He had previously been a cornerback, but has been getting his primary work at safety this year. He would seem to be competing with L.J. McCray for a roster spot. McCray was active last night, and listed as a substitution, but I’m not seeing any snaps for him. McCray is coming off a torn ACL last year. If he can’t get snaps soon, he very well might get released, with Cromartie taking his place.

Marcus Rush saw his workload doubled on Saturday. He had 21 snaps in Week 1, and 44 last night. He made the most of them, with three sacks on the night. We’ll have more on Rush later today and tomorrow. Corey Lemonier saw a bump in his own totals, with 35 snaps, but was otherwise kept off the stat sheet.

Garrison Smith also saw a big boost in work after Tony Jerod-Eddie suffered a chest injury. TJE seemed alright on the sideline later, but did not return after eight snaps. That opened the door for a big evening of work for Smith. He had five total tackles, including two for a loss, and a sack.

Here’s the full snap count (PDF):