The San Francisco 49ers face off against the San Diego Chargers in their preseason finale, and that means we’ll see a lot of second and third string football players. Most starters do not play much if at all in the final preseason game. When there are questions about the roster, it can answer some of them by seeing who sits and who plays. But beyond that, we’re looking primarily at players battling for a roster spot.
Colin Kaepernick will be front and center, but let’s maybe talk about other things. Who outside of Kaepernick will be on your radar for this evening’s late night affair?
For me, the offensive line is going to be something to watch. I’m curious to see who gets snap in the first quarter, particularly with Colin Kelly potentially getting left tackle snaps in place of Joe Staley. I don’t think we see the entire starting lineup sit, but we’ll get a better handle on that.
Elsewhere on offense, aside from Torrey Smith, my guess is Quinton Patton is the starter and thus does not get a lot of reps. But how will the rest of the group shake out tonight? I’m guessing we see a whole lot of DeAndrew White and Jeremy Kerley.
The pass rushers will be something to track as well, between Eli Harold, Tank Carradine, Corey Lemonier, and Marcus Rush. Aaron Lynch might get some work to keep the rust off during his suspension, but those first four are the ones to watch to see how that all shuffles out opposite and behind Ahmad Brooks.
I would suspect Tramaine Brock and Jimmie Ward get some rest tonight. Who among Rashard Robinson, Keith Reaser, and Dontae Johnson are the starters in their place? And will Chris Davis play, or does he have the nickel role locked up? I expect plenty of playing time for Will Redmond, so we’ll keep a close eye on him.
Who are the guys you’ll be watching?