The 49ers over the offseason kept most of their Super Bowl roster in place. That group is talented enough to go back to the postseason and make a run. There are some players that stand out more than others when looking through the roster though.
A player like George Kittle is going to be good. There’s not a huge question about what the team is going to get from him, or Richard Sherman, or Fred Warner. Other players’ production is less certain, but still vital for San Francisco in 2020. Those players are much more intriguing to watch going into the preseason.
Here are the seven most interesting players on the 49ers’ roster heading into the 2020 season:
WR Jalen Hurd
The floor is low for the 2019 third-round pick after he missed all of his rookie season with a back injury, but his ceiling remains among the highest on the team. Hurd played running back in college, moved to wide receiver for his final year, and measures in at 6-5, 230 pounds. He’ll primarily see work at receiver. How his role expands beyond working out of the slot will determine how significant his impact is in his second season. The prospect of a player who can effectively line up at receiver, running back, tight end and fullback is especially enticing in an offense as creative as Kyle Shanahan’s.
RB Jerick McKinnon
An ACL tear a week before the start of the 2018 season knocked McKinnon out for his first year with the 49ers. Complications in that same knee pushed him out for the 2019 campaign. Offseason workout videos show that McKinnon is healthy and working at full speed. A fully healthy McKinnon was brought in to be a focal point of the 49ers’ offense. A full stable of running backs will probably limit McKinnon’s touches if he’s available in 2020, but his pass-catching prowess could wind up making him the team’s most effective running back.
DL Javon Kinlaw
The 49ers’ No. 14 overall pick in the 2020 draft has big shoes to fill on the defensive line. Kinlaw was brought in to eventually replace Pro Bowler DeForest Buckner. How effectively he does that in Year 1 will send a ripple effect that touches the 49ers’ entire defense. The South Carolina product is big, powerful and athletic. He made a habit of carrying offensive linemen into the backfield in college. That’s much more difficult at the pro level. Kinlaw has an elite skill set that projects to either match or surpass Buckner, but he has to start by being a productive player as a rookie.
QB Jimmy Garoppolo
There’s not a bigger key to the 49ers returning to the Super Bowl than Garoppolo. If he regresses from his strong 2019 season, they’ll be in some trouble. They’ll be in the running if he’s the same as he was a year ago. An improved Garoppolo could carry the 49ers though. He’ll likely be tasked with throwing more after getting an increased workload throughout the 2019 campaign. He’s not recovering from an ACL tear this offseason, so he should be able to hit the ground running in 2020. Whether Garoppolo is discernibly better will be fascinating to see in camp.
CB Ahkello Witherspoon
It’s been an up-and-down three seasons for Witherspoon, who was playing at an All-Pro level before a foot injury in Week 3 sidelined him for six games. He enters a contract year in 2020 with an uphill climb to regain his starting job after Emmanuel Moseley took it last postseason. If Witherspoon answers the call, he could be a Pro Bowl-caliber corner who establishes himself as a long-term answer for the 49ers. If he doesn’t, he’ll likely be looking for a new team this offseason. How Witherspoon responds in 2020 will have a major impact on the 49ers’ secondary long-term.
LT Trent Williams
There may not have been a bigger offseason acquisition for the 49ers than Williams. They acquired the seven-time Pro Bowler shortly before long-time left tackle Joe Staley announced his retirement. Typically there wouldn’t be a lot of intrigue with a player who is widely considered one of the three or four best left tackles in the league. However, a holdout followed by the removal of a cancerous growth on his skull forced Williams to miss all of the 2019 campaign. He hasn’t played since the end of the 2018 season, so there’s no guarantee he steps back in at peak form. With one year left on his contract, Williams’ return to a Pro Bowl level has long-term ramifications for his career and a short-term impact on the success of the 49ers’ offense.
DE Dee Ford
Ford’s first season isn’t a 49ers uniform wasn’t a failure. He recorded 6.5 sacks and had a noticeable impact on the pass rush when he was in the game. Chronic knee tendinitis kept him from practicing for most of the year and limited his explosiveness. A hamstring injury on top of that forced him to miss five games and parts of two others. Ford elected to have knee surgery to fix his tendinitis, and he sounds optimistic about a return to full strength. He had 13.5 sacks and seven forced fumbles in 2018. Adding that level of statistical output to the 49ers’ already good pass rush could help carry them to another deep playoff run.
