San Francisco 49ers: Who to Watch for Against Houston in Preseason Week 1

It’s rare that the stars of preseason end up being the stars of the regular season, but breakout performances do happen.  Last season, for example, the San Francisco 49ers got their first taste of rookies Aaron Lynch and Chris Borland.  Both players had stellar preseasons as rookies, presaging their stellar rookie seasons.

What you don’t see, of course, are established starters.  According to Pro Football Focus, Anquan Boldin, Bruce Miller and Justin Smith all played less than 50 snaps throughout the entirety of 2014’s preseason.  Veterans do not have a lot to prove during preseason, leaving snaps for young players and bottom-of-the-roster fodder.

Who will coach Jim Tomsula play during San Francisco’s first preseason game this Saturday in Houston against the Texans?  We can’t be sure, both because of the normal uncertainty of preseason and the fact that we have no history as to what Tomsula does to guide us.

However, the 49ers have released their initial depth chart, which should give us a couple of clues as to who we’ll see.  It shouldn’t be taken as gospel—these are generally put together by the PR staff rather than the coaches—but it at least gives us a rough idea of what might be going on.  Let’s go position by position and highlight a few players to watch this Saturday—players who should get plenty of playing time to strut their stuff.

Quarterbacks

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Don’t expect to see much of Colin Kaepernick.  Even though the 49ers are shifting offensive coordinators, working in new receivers and generally trying to create an uptempo offense, the potential injury risk for playing Kaepernick outweighs any potential gains for playing at game speed.  A cameo in the first quarter is about all we can expect.

Instead, we’ll get the other two quarterbacks on the roster.  Blaine Gabbert is trying to bounce back after a terrible preseason last year, when he completed just 46.8 percent of his passes and ended with a quarterback rating of 54.0. 

If anything happens to Kaepernick—and the odds are higher than for other quarterbacks, considering his scrambling tendencies—that would leave Gabbert in charge of the offense.  That has, historically, not been a good thing in the NFL, though perhaps another season on the bench helped his development.  We’ll see what he’s able to do against Houston’s backups.

The third-string quarterback, Dylan Thompson, will get work in the fourth quarter.  The undrafted free agent out of South Carolina is battling for a practice-squad spot.  He has a cannon for an arm and good size (6'3", 218 lbs), but pretty much every other aspect of his game needs development.  His preseason objective is to convince coaches he’s worth developing.

Running Backs

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Carlos Hyde is the starter and isn’t likely to be overworked in preseason.  Reggie Bush is a veteran and isn’t likely to be overworked in preseason.  Kendall Hunter is basically only working in individual drills at the moment and isn’t likely to get much work in the first preseason game.

Enter rookie Mike Davis and Australian rugby sensation Jarryd Hayne.  It was a bit of a surprise that the 49ers used a fourth-round pick on another running back, but Davis fits well into what the 49ers like to do.  He’s a powerful downhill runner with surprising amounts of top-end speed when he gets into the clear. 

He’s not going to juke around players, and there are questions about his conditioning, but he could be a useful rotational and backup player in the future—probably starting in 2016, considering the Hyde/Bush/Hunter trifecta atop the depth chart.  Davis should get plenty of work.

According to offensive coordinator Geep Chryst, Hayne is going to see plenty of work on offense and special teams in his NFL debut.  Hayne, an award-winning rugby league player from Australia, is trying to take his undeniable athleticism and convert it into American football.   This will be his first real football game ever, though he’s been interested in the sport since at least 2011. 

We’ll see if he gets a chance to bust out his trademark Hayne Plane celebration in pads.  It’ll at least be fascinating to watch—can a player switch football codes like that and still play at a high level?  No one has ever gone from professional rugby league to professional American football, so Hayne is a trailblazer.

Wide Receivers

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Saturday’s game will be a chance for the undrafted free agents to shine.  There are at least a couple worth watching.

DeAndrew White has been getting a lot of press and notoriety during training camp; according to beat writers such as Can Inman, White has been putting up highlight plays.  He’s also described as inconsistent and not yet working with the starters, but there’s clearly some potential. 

He’s good in space and athletic, but he hasn’t had a chance to prove it on the field much thanks to a laundry list of injuries.  Healthy now, he could easily surprise and win a spot on the final roster.

When quarterbacks targeted Issac Blakeney, they had a quarterback rating of 107.8, according to PFF.  That’s pretty darn good.  At 6’6” and 225 pounds, he fits a niche that no other wide receiver on the roster can match—no one else is bigger than 6’3”.  He has the potential to be a red-zone threat, and his chances of making the roster are improved by the fact that he is the only truly tall receiver on the roster.  He’s one to keep a pin in, at the very least.

Don’t expect to see any of the top receivers make more than a cameo—you’re more likely to see annual preseason contributor Chuck Jacobs, who missed most of last season with an ACL tear, than you are to see Torrey Smith or Anquan Boldin.  Quinton Patton is the “top” receiver who could see any serious work.

Tight Ends

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With Vernon Davis struggling last season, there’s plenty of room for someone to step up and take more reps from him in 2015.  While the 49ers are hoping he bounces back, a backup plan is important.  There are also two rookies, Blake Bell and Rory Anderson, on the back end of the depth chart, which means this should be a huge preseason for the guys in the middle.

That pressure is on Vance McDonald and Derek Carrier.  McDonald can no longer coast on the fact that he was a second-round pick in 2013; he has to start producing in the receiving game.  He has just 10 receptions in his first two seasons. 

Yes, he’s been an above-average blocker, but at this point, the 49ers need receiving production out of their second tight end position.  McDonald needs to start showing some of the receiving skills he had at Rice, or he might find himself out of a job in 2015.

Carrier has looked good with the second team during training camp, building a rapport with Blaine Gabbert, per CSN Bay Area's Matt Maiocco.  In limited action last season, Carrier had nine receptions for 105 yards, as well as showed success in run blocking.  He could definitely take the second tight end spot from McDonald.  Both should see plenty of action against Houston—keep an eye on that battle.

Offensive Line

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It’s no secret that the offensive line is a work in progress.  Other than Joe Staley, everyone has at least a modest question mark next to them at this point.

The player I’m most excited to see is Brandon Thomas.  He was the team's third-round pick in 2014 but missed the entire season with a torn ACL.  He’s been slowly working his way back into game shape since then, and Saturday’s game will be his first game action in 18 months since the Senior Bowl in 2014. 

There’s a lot of rust to knock off, which is why he’s been mostly working with the second team.  A good performance could boost him back up to first-team reps.

Similar situations could happen to rookies Trent Brown and Ian Silberman.  Brown looks, at the moment, to be a candidate for the primary swing tackle position, while Silberman is a potential reserve anywhere along the inside.  It’s possible Silberman, Thomas and Marcus Martin could be battling for one guard position, so it will be interesting to see how the snap count breaks down at right guard.

I believe the best possible line for the 49ers this year would be either Staley-Boone-Daniel Kilgore-Thomas-Brown or Staley-Martin-Kilgore-Thomas-Boone, but the team seems to be sticking with Erik Pears at right tackle.  He shouldn’t play much in this first game, but if he goes up against J.J. Watt, look out.

Defensive Line

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The defensive line is going to look quite different in 2015, thanks to the losses of Justin Smith and Ray McDonald.  We’re looking at a rotation at both end spots, which is not something that the team has had to deal with in recent years.

We’re likely to see the back end of the rotation in the second half, and that means two young players with very different pedigrees at the end positions.

Arik Armstead, this year’s first-round pick, is raw as raw can be, but he has been impressive during camp.  Darnell Dockett told reporters the rookie is a "dominant force" who eventually will be "terrorizing everything," which is high praise indeed.  After missing all of minicamp, Armstead is buried on the depth chart—he is listed fifth at left defensive end behind Kaleb Ramsey. 

Don’t believe it: He should play a lot and vault up that list soon.

On the other side, we have Lawrence Okoye.  The former Olympic discus thrower has been a project player for each of the last two seasons and has ended up on the practice squad each year.  While he still has a year of practice-squad eligibility left, Okoye is running out of chances to make the main roster. 

He needs to show that he’s developed into a football player and not just a stud athlete.  That requires pass-rush moves, which he hasn’t shown much as of yet.  This could be his last chance—but he is looking better and better every day, per Maiocco.  This could be a make-or-break preseason for him.

Linebackers

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NaVorro Bowman is back!  Well, almost—he might not play on Saturday, and if he does, it’s likely to be a couple of snaps and no more.  It’ll still be great to see him in uniform again, but don’t expect a long appearance from him. 

The other projected starter, Michael Wilhoite, is injured and won’t be playing, either, nor will last year’s rookie outside linebacker, Aaron Lynch.

That opens opportunities elsewhere.  I’ll be looking forward to seeing my favorite pick from this year’s draft, Eli Harold, get significant work.  According to Joe Fann of the team's official site, he’s looked "relentless" during camp, and with Aldon Smith's release and Aaron Lynch still not ready to play, there’s an opportunity for him to get major playing time in 2015.  Watch out for Harold.

At inside linebacker, the absence of Wilhoite means that Nick Moody has been getting starting reps and plenty of them—he’s definitely in the middle of the conversation to be the starter across from Bowman in the regular season, with his chances improving the longer Wilhoite stays on the NFI list. 

Shayne Skov is also one to watch, as he’ll get chances with the second team thanks to Philip Wheeler’s injury.  Skov has a lot of potential after spending last year on San Francisco and Tampa Bay’s practice squads.

Defensive Backs

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There should be plenty to see here as the depth chart at both cornerback and safety need shaking out.  Tramaine Brock, Antoine Bethea and Eric Reid are locked in as starters, but everything below them is a mishmash.

At cornerback, look for this year’s sophomores to try to put on a show.  That’s Dontae Johnson, who has been getting primary work in nickel formations with Jimmie Ward not able to go full speed yet, and last year’s injury-listers Kenneth Acker and Keith Reaser. 

The 49ers may have lost their top two cornerbacks from last season, but they have a lot of young talent.  Some of them are bound to work out, and I’m especially high on Johnson entering this season.  Don’t be stunned if he takes a starting job away from Shareece Wright.

At safety, most eyes will be on second-round pick Jaquiski Tartt, who should get significant work.  He’s battling with Craig Dahl and L.J. McCray for primary backup safety snaps.  You’d hope the second-round pick would win that battle, but Tartt is, at this point, mostly a big hitter and still needs to learn coverage skills.  That battle should see plenty of time on the field in Houston.

Game Prediction

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Though I’m somewhat bearish on the 49ers as a whole in 2015, a lot of that has to do with the rough schedule they’re facing; playing in the NFC West could cost them one or two games overall.  They’re better, overall, than Houston is, and if this were a regular-season game, I’d have this pegged as a winnable road contest.

Of course, this isn’t a regular-season game, and predicting a win would require an offensive led by Blaine Gabbert to succeed on the road.  That’s not historically been a winning proposition.  Yes, Gabbert won’t have to contend with the likes of J.J. Watt, Jadeveon Clowney, Johnathan Joseph or Kareem Jackson, but Houston’s backup defense has some talented players of its own.

The 49ers took a lot of hits on their starting lineup this offseason.  They do have interesting and intriguing players to fill those slots, but that has basically promoted all of San Francisco’s interesting depth to the starting lineup.  With that being the case, it's difficult to predict that San Francisco’s backups, on the road, can outperform Houston’s.

It’s a good thing that wins and losses don’t matter in the preseason, because I have to predict the 49ers to drop this one.  As long as the starters look good while they’re in and some key reserves make big plays, the 49ers should find plenty to be pleased about in this game, scoreboard notwithstanding.

Prediction: Houston 19, San Francisco 14

Bryan Knowles is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report, covering the San Francisco 49ers.  Follow him @BryKno on twitter.