6 San Francisco 49ers Who Should Get More Playing Time

One player on the San Francisco 49ers who should get more playing time the rest of the season: wide receiver Jerome Simpson.

Simpson, who is 29-years old, has started 36 games in the NFL and made 145 catches for 2,004 yards. He also signed a two-year, $1.73-million contract this offseason, according to Spotrac. Simpson hasn’t played one down for the Niners. He was suspended for the first six games of the season.

It’s time for San Francisco to play Simpson so it can see how good he is. The season is over. The team has to start rebuilding and figuring out which players have futures with the franchise.

Here are five more 49ers who should get more playing time.

Running Back Jarryd Hayne

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Starting running back Carlos Hyde has been playing with a stress fracture in his left foot since Week 5. His toughness is remarkable, but the coaching staff should bench him for his own good.

Hyde is one of the top three young players on the team, someone the Niners should build around for the next five seasons. It would be a shame if Hyde caused permanent damage to his foot as the Niners play out the rest of their hopeless 2015 season.

San Francisco should give Hyde’s playing time to 27-year-old rookie Jarryd Hayne. Hayne is getting old for a running back, and is signed only through 2016. Is he someone worth keeping around, or should the Niners cut him in the offseason?

Defensive End Tank Carradine

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In 2013, the 49ers spent a second-round draft pick on defensive end Tank Carradine. Since then, he has started zero games in the NFL. The Niners use him as a pass-rusher in sub-packages during passing situations.

Glenn Dorsey starts ahead of Carradine at defensive end in the base defense. Dorsey used to be an elite run-defender, but he tore his biceps last year and missed the entire 2014 season. This season, he has earned a minus-2.7 grade from Pro Football Focus.

Dorsey is 30 and clearly on the down side of his career. He is not part of the team's future. It’s time the Niners bench him and promote Carradine to see what he can do as a full-time player.

Inside Linebacker Gerald Hodges

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Starting inside linebacker Michael Wilhoite is 28 years old and has started 25 games in the NFL. We know what he is: a terrible starter. Someone who should play only special teams.

At linebacker, Wilhoite can’t stop the run or the pass. Pro Football Focus has given him a grade of minus-12.3 this season; by far the lowest grade on the 49ers defense.

Fellow starting inside linebacker NaVorro Bowman, 27, is almost two years removed from tearing his ACL and MCL, and he is one of the highest paid inside linebackers in the NFL. The Niners can’t keep paying Bowman as if he’s still an All-Pro. He isn’t. Opposing teams pick on him in pass coverage. He’s a major liability.

The only inside linebacker who may have a future in San Francisco is Gerald Hodges. The Niners traded for him a few weeks ago and played him for the first time Week 7. San Francisco needs to learn how good Hodges is, so they can know exactly when to take an inside linebacker during next year’s draft.

Nose Tackle Mike Purcell

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Former undrafted free agent Mike Purcell may have been the 49ers’ best player during the preseason. The young nose tackle was a force against the run and pass.

So far during the regular season, Purcell has been active for just two games. He played in neither of them.

That's no way to develop a young player. Purcell should have been playing all along—who knows, he could have provided a boost to the 49ers’ mediocre front seven.

Now that the season is effectively over, the Niners should give Purcell as much playing time as possible. With some experience, he could develop into an impact player. The Niners don’t have many of those.

Quarterback Blaine Gabbert

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No one should think Blaine Gabbert is a future franchise quarterback, or even a future starter. He’s a backup at best.

But the Niners need a spark, and they’re not getting one from starting quarterback Colin Kaepernick. “His confidence is completely shot,” Jay Glazer said this Sunday on Fox. “It’s not that (the players) don’t like (Kaepernick). But he’s just alone, on an island in that locker room. There’s not a lot of people he connects with.”

It seems Kaepernick probably won’t be on this team next season. The players won’t rally around him—just look at their facial expressions during games—and he’s too expensive. If the Niners don’t cut Kaepernick during the offseason, he will take up almost $16.8 million of their cap room in 2016, per Spotrac.

San Francisco might as well give Blaine Gabbert a few starts. If he plays well, maybe they can trade him for a draft pick.

Follow @grantcohn.