A video posted by the 49ers’ Twitter account on Thursday showed undrafted rookie guard Erik Magnuson taking snaps with the first team offense, as first pointed out by the keen eye of 49ers beat writer Matt Maiocco.
Start your day with some highlights! Here are the top offensive plays from yesterday’s practice. pic.twitter.com/wDHjKC3l72
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) August 24, 2017
Magnuson, 23, was a first-team All-Big Ten selection at the University of Michigan last year, and played more offensive snaps, 25, than any other plyer in the 49ers’ preseason loss to the Broncos last weekend. In the video above, Magnuson, a load at 6-foot-6, 305 pounds, is shown helping open up a hole for Carlos Hyde.
Magnuson taking snaps with the first team shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering that guard seemes to be the weakest position on the team, and Kyle Shanahan has been reportedly unimpressed by first-teamers Zane Beadles and Brandon Fusco. Beadles is filling in for Joshua Garnett, who would be starting at left guard, but is currently out while he recovers from surgery to repair knee cartilage. According to Maiocco, the two starting guard roles are up in the air for Week 1 of the regular season.
Joe Staley, Trent Brown and Daniel Kilgore will be on the 49ers’ starting O-line to open the season. The other two roles are up in the air.
— Matt Maiocco (@MaioccoNBCS) August 24, 2017
The 49ers let their most effective offensive guard from last season, Andrew Tiller, walk this offseason, and are left with a group that was mostly atrocious in 2016. Beadles, Fusco and Garnett all graded out as three of the worst offensive guards in the NFL last year according to Pro Football Focus.
Sunday’s third preseason game agains the Minnesota Vikings could end up determining who we see line up a guard on September 10.