Updated
Updated · Fox News · Sep 1
49ers Leave Left Guard Spot Unsettled 9 Days Before Rams Opener as Aaron Donald Looms
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Sep 1

49ers Leave Left Guard Spot Unsettled 9 Days Before Rams Opener as Aaron Donald Looms

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Sep 1

Summary

  • Kyle Shanahan said Monday he still does not know who will start at left guard for San Francisco's Sept. 10 opener against the Rams in Australia.
  • Three practices remain before the team departs, and Shanahan called the competition "truly fluid" after the 49ers added Jarrett Patterson in a trade and continue evaluating rookie fourth-rounder Carver Willis.
  • That uncertainty is sharper because Aaron Donald, 35, has come out of a two-year retirement to rejoin Los Angeles, giving the Rams a major threat opposite an unsettled interior line.
  • The left-guard question adds to a bruising 49ers summer that has already included injuries to Nick Bosa, George Kittle and Ricky Pearsall, plus Shanahan's own recovery from a July car crash.

Insights

How will an untested 49ers left guard survive a nightmare matchup against a returning Aaron Donald and Myles Garrett in Australia?
Could San Francisco's drastic week-early travel to Melbourne be the secret weapon that neutralizes the Rams' terrifying new defensive line?
With their roster decimated by injuries, is Kyle Shanahan hiding a desperate offensive strategy to protect Brock Purdy in Week 1?