49ers training camp competitions: Ten position battles to watch as the pads go on

New York Times

28-07-2025

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Training camp officially begins today for the San Francisco 49ers. At least, according to tight end George Kittle.
'For me, football doesn't really start until we put pads on,' he said last week. 'I miss it all the time. I get to hit someone again.'
Being in full pads for the first time this season also ought to ratchet up the camp competitions that got underway last week. The linemen and running backs will come into sharper focus. The rookies, some of whom are vying for starting roles, will get their best tastes yet of what Sundays will be like.
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The following are the top 10 battles of training camp. Positions that have multiple players gunning for a job, that are particularly important spots or where the competition is especially tight and difficult to call are listed first:
'It is a wide-open competition at safety,' defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said last week. Then for emphasis, he added: 'At both spots.'
With Malik Mustapha coming back from an ACL injury, the player who seems most likely to start in Seattle on Sept. 7 is newcomer Jason Pinnock. He spent two training camps under Saleh with the New York Jets — one at cornerback, the other at safety — and knows the scheme. Pinnock is the only safety who's routinely worked with the first-stringers since the spring.
The other spot? It's a competition between another newcomer, Richie Grant, and Ji'Ayir Brown. Though Brown was a relatively high 49ers draft pick (third round in 2023), he wasn't drafted by Saleh, and being an incumbent safety won't win him many points. The dark horse in the mix: Marques Sigle. The fifth-round rookie sat out the spring but has been playing with the second-team group this summer. Sigle might be the most gifted athlete of the group, having recorded a 4.37-second 40 and a 10-foot, 10-inch broad jump at the combine.
Prediction: Pinnock and Grant
Among those under the microscope during the padded sessions is third-round rookie Upton Stout. He's looked the part of the lively, feisty — and chatty — nickelback so far. But he's also the team's smallest defender (listed at 5 foot 9 and 181 pounds), and coaches want to make sure his aggressiveness holds up in the meat-grinder areas where nickelbacks roam.
So far, Stout has lined up mostly with the No. 2 defense while veteran Tre Brown, coming off a strong spring, has been the nickel with the starters. Teams usually like having a veteran in that position because they make fewer mistakes and communicate better. Stout's quickness, however, jumps out, and he'll be hard to hold off. Stout and first-round defensive end Mykel Williams are the favorites to have the most snaps by a 49ers rookie this season.
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Prediction: Stout
Ben Bartch seemed to have the edge at this spot when the offseason began, but a quadriceps injury allowed Nick Zakelj to take the starting snaps over the first four days of training camp. Both had short but promising stints at the position last season. The loser of this battle will likely be the game-day backup at both guard spots. Seventh-round rookie Connor Colby has been the backup left guard so far in training camp.
Prediction: Bartch
If everyone were healthy, the pecking order at receiver would be clear-cut, with Brandon Aiyuk, Jauan Jennings, Ricky Pearsall, Demarcus Robinson and Jacob Cowing in the first five spots and everyone else clawing to be No. 6. But Aiyuk's ACL injury, Robinson's likely suspension, hamstring injuries to Pearsall and Cowing and, most recently, a calf injury to Jennings, have made the lineup harder to predict.
Assuming Jennings and Pearsall are the top two receivers in Week 1, No. 3 could go to fourth-round rookie Jordan Watkins, a speedster who also returns punts. Though Watson looked sharp in the spring, he hasn't been nearly as consistent against more aggressive coverage this summer.
Other candidates include Cowing, undrafted rookie Isaiah Neyor, who's the most physically gifted of any of the wideouts on the roster, and veteran Russell Gage, who had a pair of 750-plus receiving yard seasons for the Atlanta Falcons in 2020-21. He joined the 49ers' practice squad last season and has been consistent, though not flashy, so far.
Prediction: Cowing. Or Watkins.
Neyoooor in the aiiiiir ✈️ pic.twitter.com/asj9GVADMz
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) July 24, 2025
This seemed like it might be the best battle of the summer after the 49ers used an early third-round pick on Nick Martin. The move, however, served as a wake-up call for Dee Winters, who was perhaps the best player on the field in the spring and who took that momentum into training camp. The padded practices will provide another test. Is the oft-injured Winters rugged enough for an every-down role? He's been strong as a pass defender. Can he be equally stout against the run?
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Prediction: Winters
This one could be the easiest to call when the summer session ends. Special teams coach Brant Boyer said he's looking for consistency — both on field goals and kickoffs — from Jake Moody and Greg Joseph. Everything from trajectories to hang times has and will be charted.
Or the competition might simply come down to who's more accurate in preseason games. Keep an eye on the Aug. 16 outing in Las Vegas. Moody missed two field goals there two years ago and had a mixed outing on the same field in the Super Bowl.
Prediction: Moody
Kevin Givens has been the team's top three-technique — the spot Javon Hargrave played in previous seasons — so far in camp. The challenger is second-round rookie Alfred Collins, who has an entirely different profile. While Givens is a shade over 6-1 and weighs under 300 pounds, Collins is the biggest player on defense, measuring 6-6 and 332 pounds. Despite that mass, his explosiveness has been evident in the non-padded practices, and the 49ers see him as their three-technique of the future. The question is whether Collins, who played in a different scheme in college, can master the footwork in time for the opener against the Seahawks.
Prediction: Givens
As any 49ers fan can tell you, the team's third running back at the end of training camp can quickly turn into the starter. Right now, Christian McCaffrey and Isaac Guerendo are in the top two spots with veteran Patrick Taylor Jr. and rookies Jordan James (fifth round) and Corey Kiner (undrafted) vying for No. 3. (The team cut Israel Abanikanda on Thursday.) Three years ago, Jordan Mason won a battle for the No. 3 spot in part because he dedicated himself to special teams, which seems like a wise plan for Taylor, James and Kiner.
Prediction: James
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This position seems earmarked for free-agent addition Andre Dillard, who's played 1,289 snaps over his career. The problem is that Dillard (ankle) has yet to practice with the team. So far, Spencer Burford has been the backup left tackle while Austen Pleasants has been the No. 2 right tackle.
Prediction: Dillard
Ross Dwelley, Mason Pline, Jake Tonges and Brayden Willis are competing for the third spot behind George Kittle and Luke Farrell. Pline has the best size, and Willis is nimble in space, while Dwelley and Tonges are good all-around. Like the No. 3 running back, this might boil down to who is best on special teams.
Prediction: Willis
(Photos of Jason Pinnock, left, and Upton Stout: Jeff Chiu / Associated Press, Matthew Huang / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)