SANTA CLARA — Aaron Banks’ smile told so much, and not solely how his preseason debut went Friday night as the 49ers’ new left guard.
This was validation for all the work he’s put in the past year to reshape his body, about all the technique sharpening still ahead of him, and, most of all, about the joy of playing his longest in a game since his All-America days in 2020 at Notre Dame.
“I still have stuff to learn from and get better at, but I think it went well,” Banks said at his locker after the 49ers’ 28-21 home win over the Green Bay Packers.
On the other side of the locker room sat the 49ers’ other starting guard, their other mystery man on a rebuilt offensive line. Spencer Burford, a rookie, beamed with pride at his pro debut.
“It was everything you dream about and a little bit more,” Burford said. “When you get finally out there, there are nerves and jitters, especially being a rookie starting the first game.
“It was electrifying. I can’t complain.”
Coach Kyle Shanahan sure didn’t, either, when asked about his two new guards Saturday on a media call. “We got to see why they’re in the position that they are, having an opportunity to be our starters,” Shanahan said.
Not so splendid was the injury report for two starting linemen from past seasons: center/guard Daniel Brunskill (hamstring) and right tackle Mike McGlinchey (knee).
Brunskill’s strain from Friday’s lone snap will sideline him a few weeks, and that essentially could lock up the starting center role for Jake Brendel, barring the acquisition of a free agent such as J.C. Tretter. McGlinchey’s surgically repaired quadriceps checked out OK but his knee irritation will keep him out of this coming week’s practices and game at Minnesota.
If the line’s interior is the 49ers’ weak link in this season’s anxious transition to quarterback Trey Lance, then reps are valuable commodities for Banks and Burford.
Call them the “Filler Bs.” Banks, Brendel, Burford, and Brunskill will be filling jobs one way or another.
“Good to play them a bunch because they both need it. They need these three (preseason) games,” Shanahan said of Banks and Burford. “They showed out there why we believe in them. I’m real excited about them. Hopefully they get better each week.”
Banks is in the biggest spotlight. Making his NFL debut last Aug. 14, the second-round draft pick quickly injured his shoulder against the Kansas City Chiefs. That cast his rookie year into the shadows, emerging for only five offensive snaps all season in a win at Jacksonville.
Banks, with his 325-pound body now more refined, certainly relished his 41 first-half snaps in Friday’s homecoming onto the field. “Even through all those plays (Friday night), I still felt in better shape than last year,” Banks said.
Neither he nor Burford acted like they’d made it, that their starting spots were secured, that it’s clear sailing for an eternity of blocking for Lance. “I played a pretty good game, but I felt I left a lot on the table and there are improvements to be made,” Burford said.
On the second series, the 49ers allowed Lance to get sacked, and Burford blamed it on miscommunication, apparently between him and Justin Skule, who replaced right tackle Mike McGlinchey after one series.
What happened next was huge. Shanahan had enough confidence in the line to call for Lance to take a deep shot, from the shotgun with a five-step drop. The line fended off Green Bay’s five-man rush, Lance stepped up as the pocket got squeezed, and he found Danny Gray for a 76-yard touchdown pass. “We had it dialed up, and Trey does what Trey does, and Danny’s fast,” added Burford, the only projected Week 1 starter to play into the third quarter.
The 49ers’ best test of the preseason is expected to come with joint practices Wednesday and Thursday against the host Minnesota Vikings, whose 3-4 defensive front includes former Stanford nose tackle Harrison Phillips.
INJURY REPORT
Wide receiver Danny Gray, who caught a 76-yard touchdown pass from Lance, came away with hip and back soreness from his pro debut but still might see action in Minnesota.
Other injuries were to defensive end Drake Jackson (neck/shoulder nerve stinger), defensive back Dontae Johnson (ribs; week-to-week), and linebacker Curtis Robinson (groin; out a week).
Cornerback Emmanuel Moseley (hamstring) and defensive tackle Hassan Ridgeway (quadriceps) are expected to resume practicing. Defensive tackle Arik Armstead is recovering well from an Aug. 26 knee sprain but likely won’t practice until at least another week.
QB CAMARADERIE
Thinking of his teammates’ future trophy cases, Lance retrieved the footballs that produced Gray’s touchdown catch and Purdy’s first touchdown pass. “I know someone did it for me, George (Kittle) did it for me last year, so I know it’s a special one to have,” Lance said.
All three quarterbacks had a touchdown pass and no interceptions. Lance was 4-of-5 for 92 yards, Sudfeld 8-of-11 for 103 yards and Purdy 3-of-6 for 36 yards.
Shanahan said of his film review on Lance: “He did a good job, didn’t have any bad plays, was consistent with what he did and it was a good first outing for him.”
SERMON’S START
Trey Sermon averaged only 1.8 yards per carry (six runs, 11 yards) while starting at running back in place of Elijah Mitchell (hamstring) and Jeff Wilson Jr. (personal matter). Shanahan came away “real happy” with what Sermon showed in terms of improvements from his nondescript rookie year. “He didn’t have any real good looks that he should have got more on, but he didn’t hesitate. He hit the hole hard and did a real good job,” Shanahan said.
Said Sermon: “I’m definitely hungry. I feel like I have a chip on my shoulder and that’s my mentality. There’s nothing more in the world I want than to be out there playing on that field with this team and winning.”
WINNING COMBO
The 49ers’ winning points – Brock Purdy’s 5-yard touchdown pass to tight end Tanner Hudson – didn’t just come from an instant connection. “We worked together every day after practice knowing we’d have these kind of opportunities come up in preseason games,” Purdy said. “To find him on the third down and scrambling, those are the kind of things we’ve been practicing.”
While Purdy is destined for a practice-squad role behind Lance and backup Nate Sudfeld, Hudson is making a hard push for a roster spot, and that may be contingent on his blocking progress. He’s caught 15-of-16 targets in training camp.
McCLOUD’S OPPORTUNITY
Ray-Ray McCloud’s 49ers debut saw him, as expected, fielding a punt return, and made a fair catch on it. That’s OK, because he showed way more on his four receptions, including a 39-yard touchdown catch on Nate Sudfeld’s first throw in relief of Lance.
“Everybody in the NFL knows me as a punt returner, but I put on display I can play offense as a receiver,” McCloud said. “It’s all about opportunity. I know it’s preseason but it’s a welcome play.”
An unwelcome sight: McCloud fumbling away his final catch just before halftime. Now on his fourth time in five years, McCloud has 11 career fumbles, nine of which came on punt returns (five muffs).
EXTRA POINTS
— Kicker Robbie Gould reprised last season’s dual role as the 49ers’ kickoff specialist, and he had to make a tackle with a shoulder check. Why not have punter Mitch Wishnowsky do kickoffs? “We went direction last year and he did a much better job at it. It allowed Mitch’s leg to stay fresh all year,” Shanahan replied.
Source: www.mercurynews.com