The 49ers returned largely the same roster from last season. Simply moving laterally won’t be enough if they want to make another jaunt back to the Super Bowl though.
With so many players coming back, another deep postseason run will require a handful of players to take significant steps forward from where they were a year ago.
Here are five players who will have to thrive in expanded roles if the 49ers are going to repeat last year’s success:
WR Kendrick Bourne
Bourne was remarkably consistent over the last two seasons, and fell into a productive role as a third receiver last year. Since 2018, Bourne has 72 receptions for 845 yards. Of his 72 catches, 53 have gone for either a first down or a touchdown. A go-to target to convert first downs and touchdowns is valuable, but the 49ers may need more from Bourne in 2020. With question marks all over the roster at that position and a truncated offseason, Bourne’s familiarity with the offense and his rapport with Garoppolo put him in line for his most productive year as a pro.
DT DJ Jones
Losing Jones for the season to a high ankle sprain in Week 14 was a significant blow to the 49ers’ defense in 2019. He was starting to emerge as a force in the interior of their defensive line, and DeForest Buckner’s departure this offseason only opens the door for Jones to see an even larger role this year. He’s a consistently strong run defender who flashed some pass rush ability last year with a pair of impressive sacks. He could wind up being a sizable factor in replacing Buckner if he generates pressure more consistently.
RB Raheem Mostert
It’s hard to imagine Mostert taking another step forward after his stellar second half of 2019 and dominant NFC championship game performance. However, there’s plenty of room for Mostert’s role to grow. A crowded backfield will keep any back from ever garnering true No. 1 running back carries in San Francisco, but Mostert should see more than the 137 totes he got last year. There was an eight-week stretch in the middle of last season where he had just 39 attempts. Mostert averaged 13 carries per game over the final five contests. That’s probably closer to where he’ll be through all of 2020, and he could see his production skyrocket because of it.
LB Dre Greenlaw
It’ll be interesting to see how Greenlaw’s role shakes out in 2020, but he performed very well as the Will linebacker after Kwon Alexander went down with a torn pectoral in Week 9 last year. He was graded as the 49ers’ best tackling linebacker by Pro Football Focus, and allowed the second-best passer rating among 49ers linebackers when targeted in coverage. He showed the ability to be effective on all three downs, and his rookie year could be enough to push him into the Will linebacker role with Alexander taking on the Sam linebacker spot in the base defense.
WR Deebo Samuel
Samuel’s role expanded throughout his rookie campaign, but the latter half of that first season gave us a good glimpse of what he should do in Year 2. Over his final eight games in 2019, Samuel caught 35 balls for 575 yards and two touchdowns. He also posted 122 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns on nine carries. Extrapolating those numbers across 16 games gives Samuel 70 catches, 1,150 receiving yards, 18 carries, 244 rushing yards and eight total touchdowns. That’s not far off from what we’re likely to see from Samuel in 2020, especially if first-round pick Brandon Aiyuk takes awhile to find his NFL legs.
