49ers Claim Blake Hance Off Waivers

Hance plays all five positions on the offensive line.

Grant Cohn | Aug 31, 2022

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San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers just improved their offensive line.

They claimed former Cleveland Browns offensive lineman Blake Hance off waiver today, according to reports. Hance, 26, started eight games for the Browns last season -- one at left guard, one at left tackle and six at right tackle. He also played center for the Browns during last year's preseason. So it's unclear how the 49ers intend to use him.

It's possible the 49ers claimed Hance because they're concerned about Daniel Brunskill, their do-everything backup offensive lineman who can play all five positions at an acceptable level. Brunskill has been injured most of the offseason. He returned for training camp, but injured his knee in the first preseason game, and hasn't returned to practice yet.

It's also possible the 49ers claimed Hance because they're concerned about Mike McGlinchey, their starting right tackle. Like Brunskill, McGlinchey has missed most of the offseason due to various rehabs and setbacks, but he appears healthy now. Still, Hance could fill in for McGlinchey if he suffers another setback.

It's also possible the 49ers claimed Hance because they're concerned about Jake Brendel, their starting center. Brendel is 29, and yet he has started just three games in his entire career and played only three snaps since 2018. The 49ers say they like Brendel, but he really hasn't been tested yet. If he fails, the 49ers have no other centers on the roster. Hance has at least played the position in the NFL for a few preseason games.

It's also possible the 49ers claimed Hance because they're concerned about Aaron Banks, their starting left guard. Banks never has started a game in the NFL, and he struggled in the preseason.

With all these concerns on the offensive line, no wonder the 49ers added another player to it.

Published Aug 31, 2022

GRANT COHN

Grant Cohn has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily since 2011. He spent the first nine years of his career with the Santa Rosa Press Democrat where he wrote the Inside the 49ers blog and covered famous coaches and athletes such as Jim Harbaugh, Colin Kaepernick and Patrick Willis. In 2012, Inside the 49ers won Sports Blog of the Year from the Peninsula Press Club. In 2020, Cohn joined FanNation and began writing All49ers. In addition, he created a YouTube channel which has become the go-to place on YouTube to consume 49ers content. Cohn's channel typically generates roughly 3.5 million viewers per month, while the 49ers' official YouTube channel generates roughly 1.5 million viewers per month. Cohn live streams almost every day and posts videos hourly during the football season. Cohn is committed to asking the questions that 49ers fans want answered, and providing the most honest and interactive coverage in the country. His loyalty is to the reader and the viewer, not the team or any player or coach. Cohn is a new-age multimedia journalist with an old-school mentality, because his father is Lowell Cohn, the legendary sports columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle from 1979 to 1993. The two have a live podcast every Tuesday. Grant Cohn grew up in Oakland and studied English Literature at UCLA from 2006 to 2010. He currently lives in Oakland with his wife.