One starting competition that remains up in the air is the San Francisco 49ers’ right guard position. After drafting Mike McGlinchey to play right tackle and extending Laken Tomlinson, all that remained was who would play on the right side of newly signed center Weston Richburg.
And if Saturday’s game is any indication, it’s narrowed to two players: Joshua Garnett and Mike Person. Both were rotating in at right guard throughout Saturday’s preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts. Who won the day is up for debate. Debate because both played decent, and the Colts pass rush isn’t exactly a high bar.
If you ask Kyle Shanahan, he spoke at length about the play of Garnett in his conference call Sunday. When asked if he was impressed by Garnett’s performance and execution, Shanahan said this:
“I definitely was. I thought Josh played really well. I think he’s moving better, just getting more comfortable for obvious reasons. He’s been out there getting a lot more reps. I think his assignments and everything were much better and I was really pleased with how he played in the game.”
Hopefully there are no more concerns. There wasn’t a question about Person’s play during the call, but he didn’t play terribly Saturday either.
This means Jonathan Cooper may be out of the running, at least for now. Cooper hasn’t been horrible, but it’s clear it’s taking a bit longer for him to get up to speed with things. Saturday he came in for relief of Garnett, but just didn’t seem to have the same play of Garnett or Person. He also played later in the day, which could indicate something.
The days until Week 1 are flying by and the 49ers will have to make a decision. It looks like it’s narrowed itself to two. Regardless, if Saturday was any indication, the depth won’t hurt.
Any of you want to put a bet on who will start Week 1?