We hand out three game balls to the San Francisco 49ers from the Niners’ second game of the 2018 NFL Preseason, a 16-13 loss to the Houston Texans.
On yesterday’s Locked On 49ers Podcast, host Brian Peacock provided “stock up” and “stock down” analysis for players in key positional competitions, and handed out three game balls from the San Francisco 49ers’ last-minute loss to the Houston Texans in Week 2 of the 2018 NFL Preseason:
NT D.J. Jones
The 49ers began the preseason hoping that defensive end Solomon Thomas would be the most improved player on San Francisco’s defensive line; so far, nose tackle D.J. Jones has shown the most improvement among the team’s defensive linemen. In Houston, the 2017 sixth-round draft pick was disruptive in both the run game and the pass game, showing a motor that he lacked during limited game action his rookie year.
After playing just 13 percent of the 49ers’ defensive snaps in 2017 — compared to fellow defensive tackle Earl Mitchell‘s 55 percent — Jones will see a higher share of playing time in 2018 if he continues to play at the high level he demonstrated against the Texans. Jones finished Week 2 of the preseason with three tackles and a forced fumble.
LB Fred Warner
49ers rookie linebacker Fred Warner made his NFL debut on Saturday, after the third-round pick missed Week 1 of the preseason due to a minor chest injury. Warner played 33 defensive snaps over the majority of the second and third quarters of the game, and looked more like a veteran than a rookie in his first NFL action.
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan provided fans with a glimpse into the future of San Francisco’s linebacker corps, when Shanahan and 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh played Warner next to fellow inside linebacker Reuben Foster for one first-half drive. The rookie appears to be making a smooth transition into his new role on the inside; Warner finished the game with a team-high five tackles, including one tackle for loss, and recovered the fumble created by Jones:
G Joshua Garnett
Saturday marked the 2018 debut of new-and-improved guard Joshua Garnett, who spent last season losing weight in order to become a better fit in Shanahan’s zone-blocking scheme. Garnett missed last week’s game, and has yet to fully recover from a knee injury sustained during training camp in 2017, which began to draw the ire of San Francisco’s coaching staff in recent weeks.
However, Garnett didn’t appear to be hampered by the injury during the 49ers’ second preseason game. The former first-round draft pick started for San Francisco and played over half of the team’s offensive snaps, which was significantly more than fellow guard Jonathan Cooper, who saw just 30 percent. Garnett played especially well against the run, and while his performance in pass protection was mixed, the guard was likely rusty after last seeing game action at the end of the 2016 season.
With offensive lineman Eric Magnuson ruled out for at least the first portion of the 2018 regular season, Garnett’s chances of making the 49ers’ initial 53-man roster greatly improved over the weekend. Thanks to his efforts in Week 2 of the preseason, Garnett remains in the competition for starting right guard, along with Cooper and offensive lineman Mike Person:
Listen to Locked On 49ers host Brian Peacock’s review of the San Francisco 49ers’ preseason matchup with the Houston Texans — including “stock up” and “stock down” player analysis — from yesterday’s Rapid React podcast:
About the Author: Chris Wilson
