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The San Francisco 49ers have started training camp, and are looking to find some consistency on offense, as there have been changes – and injuries – on that side of the ball. There are a few wide receivers who are not on the field yet because of injuries, but luckily, the 49ers are known as a running team. That didn't stop them from pulling out a pass play on the first possession of camp, according to David Lombardi of the San Francisco Standard.
“The 49ers, who’d run on the first play of camp in each of Shanahan’s previous eight seasons, pulled a deep play fake this time,” Lombardi said. “So the very opening snap of 2025 training camp saw Purdy drop a 40-yard dime into Kittle’s breadbasket on a corner route.”
George Kittle seemed to be excited that the 49ers' first play was a pass.
“It’s definitely fun to execute like that on the first play,” Kittle said. “I will say that the defense definitely didn’t think we were going to throw a pass on the first play, which is fun.”
That alone should show that Kittle will once again be a focal point of the offense, especially with the injuries at receiver.
49ers dealing with injuries at wide receiver
The 49ers have some uncertainty in their wide receiver room, and the first player to take notice of is Brandon Aiyuk, who suffered a torn ACL last season. At this point, it doesn't seem to be a timetable for his return, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.
“San Francisco GM John Lynch told reporters today that 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk currently is ‘not anywhere close to having a concrete timeline' to return from the knee injury suffered last season,” Schefter wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Ricky Pearsall was placed on the PUP list at the start of camp, but it looks like he'll be returning soon after he was seen running at top speed on the sidelines. Shanahan also offered an update on the receiver.
“He's good now,” Shanahan said. “He's hit all his miles per hour. He's fine. We just haven't seen him the last two weeks.”
The 49ers still have Jauan Jennings, who stepped up last season after several injuries at the position. There was a chance he would hold out after not being given an extension, but he's been participating in camp, and it wouldn't be a surprise if he was WR1 to start the season.
