San Francisco 49ers preseason recap: injuries, breakout rookies, depth battles, Purdy-Pearsall hype, and the ongoing Jake Moody saga as the Niners gear up for NFL Week 1.
Alright guys, we made it. The long, never-ending offseason is finally OVER. Preseason is wrapped, rosters are (temporarily) set, and the players are gearing up to take the biggest stage in football come Week 1.
Before we all start stressing about Jake Moody again, let’s take a step back and review how the preseason actually unfolded.
Whether you’re brand new to football or a seasoned vet, it’s worth remembering that preseason games aren’t about winning. Most teams, 49ers included, barely play their starters. At most, they’ll get a series or two in the final game. Back in the day, starters might play an entire half, but with injuries piling up, Kyle Shanahan wasn’t about to take that risk. And honestly? Given that we’ve been the top-injured team year after year, we’re all good with the precaution.
Preseason is really about depth. It’s tryouts for rookies and fringe vets fighting for a spot on the 53-man roster. You can’t truly evaluate full units since lineups are so mixed, so it’s more about player evaluations than team performance. They’re essentially live rehearsals that let coaches, players, and front offices test things in a real game environment without the stakes of the regular season.
With that in mind, here’s what stood out from the action.
Game 1 vs. Broncos: A Litmus Test
Yeah, the score was ugly (9-30), but context matters. The Broncos rolled out their full first team for an entire quarter, while the Niners only started Ben Bartch. That means our 2nd team (+ Bartch) was facing Denver’s starters, then our 3rd team vs. their 2nd.
Given how unbalanced the match was, the 49ers actually showed fight, and it was fun to watch (at least the first quarter). They opened up hot: 4th round rookie Jordan Watkins hauled in a 50-yard reception to set up a 5-yard rushing TD by Patrick Taylor JR. (BTW, both players are injured now because… that’s life as a forty-niner).
Mac Jones showed us why Kyle Shanahan loves him so much. Quick refresher: back in 2021, when the 49ers were searching for their franchise QB, Kyle was split between Trey Lance and Mac Jones. They ended up selling the farm for Trey, but Kyle never lost sight of Mac. He even tried trading for him last year, but Jaguars GM Trent Baalke is, well, Trent Baalke — the toxic GM who ruins anything good. Fast forward, the Niners scoop him in free agency and here we are. True love DOES exist, folks. There’s hope for us all.
Okay, moving on.
Several rookies have become fan favorites:
â—Ź Corey Kiner (UDFA) rushed for 45 yards on 10 carries
â—Ź Sebastian Valdez (UDFA) was a pleasant surprise with solid tackles and a shared sack
â—Ź Chase Lucas, a certified DAWG and my personal favorite, made one hell of a statement – 8 tackles, a pbu (pass break up) AND probably something 49er fans haven’t seen in a LONG while — a safety! He pressured Bo Nix into intentional grounding in the end zone. A Saleh specialty. But it’s not just the stat line that makes him stand out, it’s his journey. Drafted by the Lions, he spent his first two seasons buried on special teams behind a crowded cornerback room. The Niners took a flyer on him in 2024, but he spent most of the year stuck on the bench. He re-signed this offseason and came in with a chip on his shoulder. But he was tired of being on the bench and flat-out showed everyone why he belongs in the rotation.
The lowlights? The QB3 spot is a concern.
Carter Bradley (yes, you heard that last name correctly – son of assistant head coach Gus Bradley) and Tanner Mordecai both looked overwhelmed. But here’s the thing, if you need to play your QB3 in a regular season game, well, something catastrophic has already happened and your team probably has bigger issues.
A (false) hidden gem – rookie return specialist Junior Bergen flashed with a 28-yard punt return, one of the longest in the Shanahan era. File that name away, though.
Overall, Game 1 had plenty to enjoy.
Robert Saleh made his return to Levi’s, and facing the Broncos brought out all the familiar connections between the two teams. And honestly? Getting reps against a full set of starters isn’t the worst thing. If nothing else, it gave us a solid litmus test of where the depth guys really stand.
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Game 2 vs Raiders: Iconic Rivalry Lives On
It doesn’t matter if it’s Oakland, Los Angeles, or Las Vegas, this matchup will always feel iconic. Honestly, the NFL should just lock this in as a yearly regular-season rivalry game.
Before joint practices even started Maxx Crosby was instigating fights. He is the epitome of Raider vibes and honestly, I love it. He came in ready to scrap, but Kyle Shanahan shut it down quick, warning his guys not to take the bait.
We got a glimpse of starters on the opening drive, which meant the debut of the long anticipated Purdy-Pearsall connection we kept hearing about. The hype from camp wasn’t smoke; they linked up three times right away for gains of 7, 14, and 21 yards. And just like all the Purdy hate out there, the Pearsall slander makes zero sense as well. No, he’s not Justin Jefferson, he’s not A.J. Brown….yet. But maybe let the guy play before writing him off? Remember, he literally survived a gunshot last year (a 2% survival chance) and was back on the field by Week 7. Still not sure how he made it back on the field before CMC but, moving on.
Unfortunately, the injury bug bit again.
Corey Kiner, who’d been one of the early bright spots, got carted off with a high ankle sprain. Another name on the ever-growing list. I’ve honestly lost count at this point but I think it’s around 28 or 29. Chase Lucas, on the other hand, kept balling out with an interception and a sack, while safety Jaylen Mahoney added a fourth-quarter pick that set up… the one, the only, Jake Moody.
Moody drilled a career-long 59-yarder.
The team rallied around him; Brant Boyer even called it “career saving.” But let’s be real: if one preseason kick has to “save” your career, your career’s still in question. And when you follow that up with a 3-for-5 practice week? Yeah. Inconsistency remains the theme and nobody is convinced. File this one away too, because it comes back around in the Game 3 recap.
On the positive side…
The secondary looked sharper than it has in years. Don’t be surprised if Ja’iyer Brown becomes a trade chip though. But the red zone? Still shaky. The miss to Demarcus Robinson on 4th down wasn’t ideal.
The offensive line remains a worry
Especially when guard Dominic Puni went out with an injury. And if you’re wondering why Shanahan hasn’t gone shopping for linemen, well, he has, but linemen are rare, especially the kind who fit his very specific system.
Bottom line: plenty of encouraging signs, but still plenty that needs fixing.
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Game 3 vs Chargers: Family Ties and Sweet Reunions
Jim Harbaugh, Trey Lance, and NaVorro Bowman came back for a sweet reunion. All signs pointed to this being an exciting game, with Trey Lance as the backup for the Chargers and Mac Jones as the backup for the 49ers (remember the love triangle I mentioned earlier). Well, unfortunately, Mac Jones was injured because…well, he’s a 49ers player. And Trey Lance played like 10 snaps, and they were unimpressive (unlike his performance in the 3 earlier preseason games). The first half was an absolute snooze-fest. Punt, 3rd down, punt, 3rd down, and on and on the anemic game went.
Finally, early in the 2nd quarter, Tanner Mordecai fired a laser to Demarcus Robinson for a touchdown. We were on the board! But with only 6 points. Why? Because our beloved Jake Moody missed a PAT. That’s right. Last year, it was missing field goals, and instead of improving, he regressed even more. Missing the extra points should never be a thing in the NFL. Those are automatic. Unless you’re Jake Moody.
And the fans let him know it. Every time he stepped on the field, Levi’s erupted in boos. Booing your own kicker at home is brutal. I could only imagine how Jake Moody felt, how the coaches felt, how the team felt. I know I felt for him. It was awkward.
Special teams did bring some chaos, though.
Punter Thomas Morstead forced two muffed punts that the Niners recovered. On the flip side, rookie returner Junior Bergen muffed one of his own, and Moody added a new trick to his lowlight reel: kicking the ball out of bounds.
Kyle Shanahan and Brian Schneider looked ready to combust on the sideline. I mean, if looks could kill, they would be wanted for murder in 50 states.
But still, there were bright spots:
â—Ź Skyy Moore made his debut after the trade from Kansas City.
● Curtis Robinson, coming back from his torn ACL last year, delivered a pick-six. He didn’t crack the 53, but he’s back on the practice squad and could resurface later.
● Terique Owens (yes, T.O.’s son) scored his first NFL touchdown, which his dad literally called earlier that day.
Now we just need T.O. to manifest a Super Bowl win. I mean, if that’s all it takes, what are you waiting for T.O.?
Even cooler:
This matchup featured the son of another hall of famer, our very own, Jerry Rice. His son, Brendan Rice, and Terique Owens both repped NFL royalty in the same matchup. Unfortunately, neither of them made their respective team’s roster or even the practice squad. Brenan Rice got picked up from waivers by the Eagles and Terique Owens never made it back to the 49ers practice squad. But hopefully we’ll see him in the future again.
And, because it wouldn’t be a Bay Area game without him, E-40 made an appearance.
Always a W.
Final Takeaways
So what did we actually learn from this rollercoaster of a preseason?
â—Ź Depth matters – and we got a pretty great practice squad
â—Ź Injuries still haunt us – I don’t get it, at some point you gotta wonder who keeps casting spells on us
â—Ź The secondary looks sharper – for once, the back end doesn’t feel like a weakness but we’ll see how it shapes up in regular season
â—Ź And Jake Moody? – the saga continues
At the end of the day, preseason isn’t about the scoreboard. It’s about glimpses, and we got plenty. We saw Purdy and Pearsall click, we saw legacy names like Owens and Rice carry the torch, even if it was a short ride, and we saw Shanahan’s depth chart get tested in every possible way.
Bang Bang, Niner Gang, buckle up!
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