Battle For Right Guard At 49ers Continues

Jeffrey Beall via Wikimedia Commons

NFL

Battle For Right Guard At 49ers

Battle for right guard at the San Francisco 49ers is starting to unfold. As training camp continues, most positional battles have been locked down. There is still some competition for players in the wide receiver core to secure a position on the team.

However, that has started to sort itself out. The position that remains the most unclear at this stage is that of right guard. Going into training camp, Joshua Garnett seemed most likely to be the starting right guard.

Although Garnett has yet to hit his peak, most believed he would likely beat out competition from Jonathan Cooper and Mike Person. Since re-injuring his knee, the battle for right guard has now blown wide open.

Garnett will rest for the remainder of this week’s practice and will be reassessed at the start of the new training week. He will miss the teams opening pre-season game against the Dallas Cowboys.

Garnett, a former first-round draft pick for the Niners in 2016 has yet to show his full potential. Injuring his knee at the start of the 2017 season, Garnett underwent surgery prior to spending the entire year rehabbing. He also spent this time drastically reducing his weight, working on his fitness and technique in order to better suit Kyle Shanahan’s scheme.

With Garnett now entering the 3rd year of his rookie contract, it has left many asking the question should the Niners try and keep him on the 53 man roster or cut him? It will ultimately come down to his ability to recover from this injury and stay healthy for the remainder of camp and potentially the season.

Mike Person

Person was signed to a one-year contract this season. Since Garnett’s recent injury, Mike Person has been taking the 1st team snaps at training. Person was originally drafted in the 7th round of the 2011 draft by the 49ers.

He didn’t last long, however, being released in August of 2012. Since his start with the Niners, he has certainly bounced around the league. Person has spent time with five other NFL teams which doesn’t exactly give great confidence in his ability.

Person does have experience at guard however played center during the last two seasons. At this stage, he will most likely be the starting right guard for the upcoming Cowboys game.

Jonathan Cooper

Cooper, a former 1st round pick by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2013 draft, signed a one-year deal this season. He only this week started participating in team drills at training camp. Cooper spent the offseason recovering after receiving surgery to his knee post an MCL injury.

He does bring some experience to the team but with that, also injuries and inconsistency. Like Person, he has also bounced around the league with the 49ers now becoming his 5th team.

While he does add some depth and competition for the guard position, he has not had a stellar career. Should he get healthy, his athleticism and explosiveness will be his best asset in securing a role. Cooper started 13 games for the Dallas Cowboys in 2017 playing left guard.