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Kyle Shanahan weighs in on crucial 49ers offensive position battle
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- Kyle Shanahan weighs in on crucial 49ers offensive position battle
Kyle Shanahan weighs in on crucial 49ers offensive position battle
After a joint practice with the Tennessee Titans there's still no clarity for the San Francisco 49ers on their left guard battle according to 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Shanahan on Tuesday spoke with reporters after the 49ers wrapped up their joint practice with the Titans and indicated that nothing changed in the race for the fifth and final starting spot on San Francisco's offensive line. Entering practice it was veteran Robert Jones and second-year player Connor Colby who were the presumed frontrunners at the position with rookie Carver Willis potentially making his way into the mix. That was where Shanahan said things still stood after practice.
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"I think it's too early to say," Shanahan said. "There definitely is a battle there. It's open for anybody. Those guys would probably be the lead at it. Love to get Carver in that, too. Him missing a week or whatever it was with his concussion made him out of it a little bit, but he's been out two practices in a row. It's still early. We want to see those guys in the games, too, but it's definitely a battle for us to see who gets that spot."
There's a distinct difference between an open battle with multiple good players and one hasn't been able to separate themselves, and an open battle with multiple players who aren't good enough to step into the vacancy. Colby and Jones have had some issues with the starting group, and now Shanahan is potentially resting the team's hopes on a fifth-round draft pick who is changing positions after playing offensive tackle in college.
San Francisco won't need to nail down a definite starter until Week 1, but the fact they're inside of a month to go until their regular season opener and the coaching staff is still awaiting a player to put a stranglehold on the starting LG job is not a great sign entering their preseason opener.
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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Kyle Shanahan weighs in on crucial 49ers offensive position battle
