49ers Practice Squad: 5 Likeliest Players to be Called Up
The practice squad of the San Francisco 49ers shaped up exactly how they wanted it to.
Every player fell into their laps as they wanted and no other team poached away a promising player. That is mostly thanks to a lack of preseason games for teams to truly scout players.
Nevertheless, the 49ers have a strong practice squad with developmental and veteran players at their disposal that they can call upon.
Here are the five likeliest players to be called up during the season.
Johnathan Cyprien
I have to admit I was surprised the 49ers elected to place Johnathan Cyprien on the practice squad. In a matter of just one week of being signed, Cyprien made an impact on the field. He was making plays at every practice he was at. No other defensive back was sniffing the plays he was making outside of Richard Sherman. I am also surprised Cyprien settled for a practice squad role since he outright said it would not sit well with him.
Clearly, he saw how great of a team the 49ers were, and he altered his position. Cyprien being brought up at some point in the season is the biggest lock there is because of the questionable health of Jimmie Ward and Jaquiski Tartt. An injury to K'Waun Williams would also warrant Cyprien being called up since that would force the 49ers to swing Tarvarius Moore over to nickelback.
Dion Jordan
Defensive line depth is never enough in the NFL. At least, that is what the 49ers learned in 2019. Depth could become an issue again this season as plenty of defensive linemen have injury histories. Dion Jordan is certainly one player that could be called up should players start dropping like flies.
Jordan wasn't good at all for the entirety of training camp. If the 49ers are lucky, they will not have to call Jordan up. But their hand will be a little forced here because he is experienced and there is always that "potential" he has that will make them feel like he can break out.
Jauan Jennings
Speaking of players who didn't have a good training camp, Jauan Jennings didn't impress much from start to finish. He may have had some flashes, but overall he wasn't a player you would invest much in. Still, he is a player the 49ers are fond of and could be brought up for the same reason as Dion Jordan.
Wide receiver is one position group that doesn't necessarily have adequate health. It isn't of the same zone as the defensive line, but something to definitely be somewhat concerned of. As soon as one wide receiver goes down, Jennings will most likely be the one to be called up.
Darrion Daniels
Keeping up with the trend of players that could be brought up due to injury, undrafted free agent Darrion Daniels is part of the circle. Except it is different when he comes to Daniels. He actually looked solid in training camp, which was shocking to see. He immediately became my top diamond in the rough player at camp as he won a fair amount of matchups against the starting offensive line.
This is a player that I will remain to be high on because he could be a really good asset to the 49ers. Daniels has a chance to showcase his skills this season, but the only way I see that is if the defensive line starts to suffer an influx of injuries.
JaMycal Hasty
Kyle Shanahan loves his running backs. It is because of that strong love that he has a very low tolerance for mistakes. Should any of the running backs currently on the active roster start to make continuous errors, do not be shocked if JaMycal Hasty gets the call up. Hasty was one of the more consistent players at training camp. He would make mistakes, but always made a handful of plays that make you say, "Wow".
Honestly, he might even be a better player than Tevin Coleman at some point. Hasty will definitely be considered at one point or another because of the high competition. And even if the competition isn't what gets him considered, then there is always the injury aspect to take into account.