San Francisco 49ers' Biggest Preseason Disappointments so Far

On August 4 at Michael Mina’s Tailgate inside Levi’s Stadium, San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke raved to a group of beat writers about Shareece Wright, a cornerback the Niners signed this offseason.

“He’s a highly intelligent player,” Baalke said. “We saw a lot of the similarities that we saw in Carlos (Rogers) when we signed him…(Rogers) didn’t have a lot of on-the-ball production (in Washington). And then he came here, and in Year 1 he had six interceptions and went to the Pro Bowl.”

Wright may do those things his first year with Niners, like Rogers did. Although it’ll to be tough for Wright to match Rogers’ production from the bench. After the first preseason game, the Niners demoted Wright to the second-team defense.

He’s one preseason disappointment.

Here are five more.

TE Blake Bell, Rookie

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When the 49ers drafted Blake Bell, it seemed he had a chance to be their No. 2 tight end as a rookie. His main competition for the job was third-year tight end Vance McDonald, who made just 10 catches the first two seasons of his career.

McDonald has bad hands—or maybe bad eyes. Frequently he looks upfield for a place to run before finishing the catch, and the ball flies through his hands.

Bell watches the ball into his hands before turning upfield, so he rarely drops a pass. I saw him drop just one the first three weeks of training camp. He’s a better receiver than McDonald.

But can Bell block? He played quarterback his first three years at the University of Oklahoma, meaning he has just one year of experience at tight end. Blocking still is new to him.

Through two preseason games, Bell has the worst run-blocking grade on the team, according to Pro Football Focus, which gave him a minus-4.6. And he has played only 37 snaps.

Bell probably will be no better than the No. 4 tight end until he improves his blocking.

RG Marcus Martin, Second Season

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Marcus Martin made eight starts at center as a rookie last season, and he was awful. Pro Football Focus gave him a grade of minus-17.1.

This offseason the Niners moved Martin to right guard—maybe they thought he’d play better at a new position.

So far, he’s been just as bad at right guard as he was at center. In just 36 preseason snaps, Pro Football focus has given him a grade of minus-1.6.

Martin made a few good blocks in the running game against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, but he struggled in pass protection for the second week in a row. On one play he was late to react to a stunt, which led to a sack.

If Martin struggles again next week, he may lose his starting job to Jordan Devey, whom the 49ers acquired in a trade with the New England Patriots in exchange for tight end Asante Cleveland.

WR Quinton Patton, Third Season

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With Bruce Ellington nursing a muscle pull and Jerome Simpson facing a six-game suspension to start the season, Quinton Patton has been the de-facto No. 3 receiver in training camp.

During team drills the past few weeks, Patton made 12 catches on passes thrown by starting quarterback Colin Kaepernick—one more catch than No. 2 receiver Torrey Smith made. The Niners certainly gave Patton chances.

So far he hasn’t done much with them. During the first preseason game, he caught zero passes, and during the second preseason game, he caught three passes for two yards. After one of his catches, he tried to cut across the field and lost 12 yards—a junior-varsity mistake.

On a conference call Monday afternoon, head coach Jim Tomsula said Ellington will return to practice this week. As long as he suffers no setbacks, he probably will pass Patton on the depth chart before the regular season.

OLB Ahmad Brooks, 10th Season

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When the 49ers released Aldon Smith this offseason, the best pass-rusher left on the team seemed to be Ahmad Brooks.

Last season Brooks had six sacks, tied for the team lead. The season before, he had 8.5 sacks and went to the Pro Bowl. He was one of the best outside linebackers in the NFL.

He was especially good against the run. He played middle linebacker at the University of Virginia, so he’s a natural when it comes to identifying run plays.

But he’s a limited pass-rusher despite his sack totals—always has been. He doesn’t have pass-rush moves. He get sacks based on sheer athleticism, and his athleticism is beginning to diminish. He turned 31 in March.

This offseason the Niners spent their third-round pick on pass-rusher Eli Harold from the University of Virginia, Brooks’ alma mater. According to Pro Football Focus, Harold has hit the quarterback three times through two preseason games, and Brooks has hit the quarterback zero times. He hasn’t even come close.

Don’t be shocked if Harold replaces Brooks in the sub-packages during the regular season and Brooks plays only in the base defense.

QB Colin Kaepernick, Fifth Season

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After two preseason games, eight pass attempts and only three completions for a measly 27 yards and no touchdowns, is it fair to call Colin Kaepernick a disappointment?

Of course not.

But it’s disappointing that he hasn’t played better. It’s disappointing his passer rating is 47.4. It’s disappointing that he hasn’t yet completed a pass to wide receiver Torrey Smith, the Niners’ big free-agent signing this offseason.

Compare Kaepernick to Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, whom the Niners will face Week 1. Bridgewater has completed 22 of 28 pass attempts in the preseason, and his passer rating is 111.2.

Bridgewater is ready for Week 1. Is Kaepernick ready?

All quotations and practice observations were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

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