Four Fascinating Storylines from 49ers OTAs and Minicamp

By Scooter_McG

The 49ers have finished the OTA and minicamp portions of their offseason program and now the long wait until training camp begins. 

While it is never a good idea to take too much away from these practices, there were some interesting storylines to follow. Here's the storylines I found most fascinating.

QB battle looms

Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch promised that Lance and Darnold would split reps with the 1s while Purdy rehabilitates his elbow, and that is exactly what happened during OTAs and minicamp. Depending on which reports you read, and the message the author wants to convey, you will hear some conflicting information regarding how well either player looked through these practices. 

It is a huge season for Lance in terms of his long term tenure with the 49ers. There was a lot of talk prior to OTAs about how Lance had been working on his throwing mechanics and how much they have changed. And from what I have seen it does appear that he has improved his footwork and mechanics to some degree, at least during warmups. It will be interesting to see how that holds up under live action though. And I do worry that if he gets caught thinking about his technique that is may slow down his development in terms of reading defenses and getting the timing correct within the offense. The burden of having to beat out not only Purdy but also Darnold will also test his mettle. Will he rise to the occasion, or will he crumble under the pressure? 

For Darnold, while this is no doubt the best situation he has found himself in in terms of team and coaching staff around him, it is a big task to come into an environment where there is already two QBs on the roster that know the offense and the staff believes in and wants to see succeed. And Shanahan's offense is not an easy one to learn. Can Darnold reinvent himself and turn his career around? Will he even get that chance?  

It didn't sound like either player really stood out more than the other in OTAs and minicamp, either good or bad. The battle during training camp should be fun to watch.  

And no matter how good either player looks during camp there appears a decent chance it is just a battle to be the backup. Purdy looks to be on track to be ready at some point during training camp and Shanahan and Lynch have both outlined how Purdy is currently the leader in any battle to win the starting QB job. If Purdy is able to return at full strength during camp and show he can still run the offense efficiently, it will be hard to supplant him. 

Offensive line takes shape

When the 49ers didn't add any OL during the draft it came as quite a surprise to many, following the loss of McGlinchey and Brunskill in FA with a couple of journeymen (Prior and Feliciano) the only additions. But Shanahan and Lynch have been adamant throughout the offseason that they liked what they already had on the roster. 

During OTAs and minicamp it was indeed Colton McKivitz lining up as the starting RT, with the other four spots to be manned by the same four players as last season (noting Burford is in line to be the full time starting RG this year now that Brunskill has left, while Williams did not participate in team drills with Jaylon Moore predominantly standing in for him at LT). 

It is impossible to really tell how the unit looks until pads go on, so we didn't really learn anything about the OL during OTAs and minicamp, outside of the fact the team seemed happy to stick with those players as the starting unit. It appears the FA additions of Prior and Feliciano worked with the second unit throughout practices. 

Of all the position groups on the team, the OL is the one that stands out as being the biggest risk for the team's success in 2023. How the unit performs during training camp will be one to watch closely, and whether the team looks to split reps with the first unit at any of the positions. 

Drake Jackson adds muscle, strength

The 49ers made a big splash in FA signing the best DL on the market in DT Javon Hargrave. But they also lost some important role players on the edge in Samson Ebukam, Charles Omenihu and Jordan Willis. FA additions such as Ferrell and Bryant will help fill some of the snaps lost, but the team will be counting on last year's second round pick Drake Jackson stepping up in year two.

It was encouraging then to hear and see how much bigger and stronger Jackson is heading into year two. According to Jackson he has added around 15 pounds of muscle this offseason while hitting new personal bests in terms of bench and squats. The added bulk was noticeable as he took to the podium for an interview during OTAs. While not necessarily sculpted, Jackson does indeed look bigger and thicker. 

Both the coaching staff and his teammates also noticed and made comments about the strides Jackson made this offseason. Kyle Shanahan and Steve Wilks were very complimentary of the work he has put in to get himself ready for year two, while teammates have commented that despite the added bulk and strength, Jackson remains quick and agile. 

The arrow definitely appears to be pointing up for Jackson, which is great news for the 49ers.  

Wide receivers ready to take off

While the offense was very good last season, one aspect of the offense that was a little underwhelming was the play of the wide receivers. They weren't bad, but after a stellar 2021 campaign from Deebo Samuel and a strong second half to the 2021 season by Aiyuk, as well as Jauan Jennings emerging as a solid #3 receiver, the 49ers WR group appeared poised to become one of the top units in the NFL. 

Instead, while Aiyuk gave a solid performance and his first 1,000 yard season in 2022, he failed to really emerge as anything more than a complementary receiver. Jennings established himself as the third WR, but was inconsistent. And while Deebo continued to be a beast with the ball in hand, he appeared to regress as a threat on anything beyond five yards from the line of scrimmage. 

It was very encouraging then to hear about how Aiyuk appears to have taken another step forward this offseason in terms of his ability to separate from DBs. Aiyuk himself has outlined how he feels ready to 'take off' in 2023, and coaches and players alike seem to agree. I was also excited to hear Deebo acknowledge he was 'awful' and out of shape in 2022 after the distractions of contract negotiations. Hopefully that means he has been dedicating this offseason to getting in better shape and refining his route running down the field to provide a threat to defenses at all levels, like he provided in 2021. 

Danny Gray also received some praise from coaches for his offseason and how he has looked in practices. Gray had a season to forget last year, but if he can come in and contribute in year two that will add a nice speed dimension to the WR group.