Day two of training camp for the San Francisco 49ers was eventful. Before the second session, the team released information on the newest 49ers injuries, as OT Vadarian Lowe will miss some time, and WR Christian Kirk and DT Gracen Holton are dealing with injuries that will limit them moving forward. RB Jordan James wasn’t seen during the second portion of Monday’s session, but it is unclear whether it was due to an injury, and the team breathed a sigh of relief as rookie EDGE Romello Height was carted
off before the official diagnosis of cramps was announced.
Here are three notes from day two of 49ers training camp
Stribling has a golden opportunity to gain reps
Even before Kirk’s injury, it felt as if the 49ers were pushing rookie wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling into the third receiver role, at the very least. Now, with Kirk set to miss valuable practice time, Stribling has a chance to put a stranglehold on his role with very little competition. Stribling, in addition to Mike Evans and Ricky Pearsall, has a chance to be explosive, as Stribling can move all over the field and can flip positions with Pearsall.
Brock Purdy praised Stribling in his press conference following the session on Monday.
ESPN’s Nick Wagoner writes: “Purdy has been impressed by the early returns on Stribling. Much will be made of his speed and separation skills, which is fair. But he’s a bigger body who is unafraid to go over the middle. With Jauan Jennings gone, adding someone who brings that size and fearlessness (with plus speed, to boot) could help open things up for Purdy and Co.”
The safety position has one constant through two days
Day one of camp featured Ji’Ayir Brown and Marques Sigle to start the day, with Malik Mustapha rotating with Sigle. On day two, Brown was in the same spot with Mustapha starting and Sigle rotating with Mustapha. It’s only two days, but so far, Brown has settled into one spot with the other two 49ers draft picks auditioning for the spot opposite him. Perhaps Raheem Morris wants two free safety types, which would be Brown and Sigle.
Brown intercepted Purdy on an in-breaking route that was intended for Jacob Cowing. So far, Connor Colby (LG), Nick Martin (SAM LB), and Brown have been the frontrunners at each position. Let’s see how long that lasts.
The five-man defensive front integration continues
We wondered what wrinkles Morris would add to the 49ers defense, and through two sessions, the 49ers have been implementing five-man fronts into their defensive scheme. Trent Williams spoke about the new look after Sunday’s practice, and Purdy spoke about it after yesterday’s session.
Wagoner believes this is here to stay.
“The use of 5-man fronts is going to be a discussion that continues to pick up as the year goes on. It’s early, but the Niners seem to be doing more than just toying with it as a gimmick here and there. Purdy even acknowledged that things look quite a bit different going against Raheem Morris’ defense than what the Niners have done previously.”
For a longer discussion about day two of 49ers training camp, check out the video below:
