My first 53-man roster projection, with practice squad, & injured lists, version 1.0

With the 2024 NFL Draft, & Free Agency in rearview mirror, it’s time for my first projected roster for 2024, with practice squad, & injured lists.

OFFENSE: 

QB(3): 13 Brock Purdy(2025), 5 Joshua Dobbs(2024), & 17 Brandon Allen(2024)

RB(4): 23 Christian McCaffrey(2025), 49 Isaac Guerendo(2027), 24 Jordan Mason(2024), & 25 Elijah Mitchell(2024)

FB(1): 44 Kyle Juszczyk(2025)

WR(5): 11 Brandon Aiyuk(2024), 19 Deebo Samuel(2025), 15 Jauan Jennings(2024), 14 Ricky Pearsall(2027), & 83 Jacob Cowing(2027)

TE(4): 85 George Kittle(2025), 82 Eric Saubert(2024), 81 Cameron Latu(2026), & 9 Brayden Willis(2026)

C(2): 64 Jake Brendel(2026), & 78 Ben Bartch(2024)

LG(2): 65 Aaron Banks(2024), & 77 Dominick Puni(2027)

RG(2): 55 Jon Feliciano(2024), & 62 Jarrett Kingston(2027)

LT(2): 71 Trent Williams(2026), & 76 Jaylon Moore(2024)

RT(1): 68 Colton McKivitz(2025)

DEFENSE:

DE(5): 97 Nick Bosa(2028), 56 Leonard Floyd(2025), 94 Yetur Gross-Matos(2025), 95 Drake Jackson(2025), & 51 Robert Beal Jr.(2026)

DT(3): 99 Maliek Collins(2025), 90 Kevin Givens(2024), & 92 Jordan Elliott(2025)

NT(2): 98 Javon Hargrave(2026), & 93 Kalia Davis(2025)

SLB(1): 45 Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles(2024)

MLB(2): 54 Fred Warner(2026), & 50 Jalen Graham(2026)

WLB(2): 59 De’Vondre Campbell(2024), & 53 Dee Winters(2026)

CB(5): 7 Charvarius Ward(2024), 22 Isaac Yiadom(2024), 2 Deommodore Lenoir(2024), 33 Rock Ya-Sin(2024), & 31 Renardo Green(2027)

S(4): 29 Talanoa Hufanga(2024), 27 Ji’Ayir Brown(2026), 30 George Odum(2026), & 43 Malik Mustapha(2027)

SPECIAL TEAMS:

PK(1): 4 Jake Moody(2026)

P(1): 3 Mitch Wishnowsky(2026)

LS(1): 46 Taybor Pepper(2025)

INJURED LISTS:

WLB 57 Dre Greenlaw(2024)

PRACTICE SQUAD:

RB 38 Cody Schrader
WR 84 Terique Owens
WR 19 Trent Taylor*
WR 18 Chris Conley*
TE 89 Mason Pline
C 66 Drake Nugent
RG 74 Spencer Burford
LT 67 Isaac Alarcon**
RT 75 Brandon Parker*
DT 96 T.Y. McGill Jr.*
NT 66 Evan Anderson
SLB 48 Tatum Bethune
SLB 47 Ezekiel Turner*
CB 0 Samuel Womack III
CB 28 Darrell Luter Jr.
FS 41 Tayler Hawkins
FS 43 Jaylen Mahoney

With this roster, the 49ers would have 72 players signed, with $260,315,984 in committed salaries for 2024, plus $21,176,527 in dead money, for a total commitment of $281,492,511, leaving the 49ers $15,971,923 under their $297,464,434 adjusted salary cap for 2024.

I also need to remind everyone that when the 49ers do extend Brandon Aiyuk, the 49ers will save between $5 million to $8 million in salary cap room, which would give the 49ers somewhere in the $20.971 million to $23.971 milli0n in cap room for 2024.

As for 2025, the 49ers would be $7,300,186 over a projected $280 million salary cap with this roster, with just 34 players signed, and with 51 players signed, the 49ers would be $21,580,186 over that $280 million projected cap.

The 49ers will be just fine in 2025, I don’t expect them to have to cut/trade anyone of their core players, but I do see them losing some key players, like wide receiver Jauan Jennings, left guard Aaron Banks, & strong safety Talanoa Hufanga in free agency, as all are UFAs after 2024, plus there’s a chance they may not be able to re-sign weakside linebacker Dre Greenlaw, and/or cornerback Deommodore Lenoir, that will depend on just how their 2025 salary cap looks like.

I believe the reasoning for not bringing back Jennings, Banks, & Hufanga are the fact that the 49ers can’t pay 3 wide receivers, they won’t pay a Guard $10 million+ a year, & they just won’t pay top tier safety money, but also the fact that the 49ers seemed to have drafted potential replacements in wide receivers Ricky Pearsall, & Jacob Cowing, guards Dominick Puni, & Jarrett Kingston, & safety Malik Mustapha in the 2024 draft.

Now, the 49ers will likely carryover somewhere in the $15 million to $18 million range, over to 2025, helping their 2025 cap, which would help the team retain a player like Deommodore Lenoir, and/or Dre Greenlaw, plus be able to extend Charvarius Ward before his deal voids after the 2024 season, in which he’s set to count $12.298 million in dead money, so the team should really try to get Mooney extended, which would also save some salary cap room for 2024, which can be carried over into 2025, plus they’d likely be able to get his 2025 cap number near or even lower than the pending $12.298 million in dead money.

For 2025, the 49ers can save quite a bit of salary cap room by restructuring deals or extending players, with them listed below.

RB Christian McCaffrey – $8.596 million (Extension)

WR Deebo Samuel – $12,344,423 (Extension)

TE George Kittle – $10.516 million (Extension)

LT Trent Williams – $16.996 million (Restructure)

NT Javon Hargrave – $14.916 million (Restructure)

MLB Fred Warner – $13.116 million (Restructure)

Now, about the roster, I want to explain why I went with certain players over others.

At quarterback, I went with 3, because I’m not 100% sure if the new 3^rd QB rule that now allows a practice squad quarterback to be the 3^rd QB, whether that practice squad player counts against the players maximum allowed games, which is 3, as well as counting against the max of 2 players from the practice squad being elevated, so I kept Brandon Allen, if the rule is the opposite, & it doesn’t count, I can see the 49ers cutting Allen, putting him on the practice squad, & having him as the 3^rd QB each week.

I went with 4 running backs, & 1 fullback, due to injuries mainly, as we’ve seen in past years that the 49ers backs can’t stay healthy, but also so the 49ers have options to keep Christian McCaffrey fresh, as he was pretty much the primary RB for the first 16 games, while sitting out the final game, since the 49ers had already wrapped up the 1 seed, I can see the 49ers trading Elijah Mitchell, who is a UFA after 2024, and keeping UDFA Cody Schrader on the 53.

At wide receiver I went with just 5, because I believe the 5 I have are all locked into roster spots, both on the 53-man roster, but also the 48-man active gameday roster, now if the 49ers were to keep a 6^th WR it would likely be Chris Conley, but the fact is the 49ers are unlikely to have all 6 receivers active on gameday.

I kept 4 tight ends, because the team just doesn’t have a clear #2, as of now, I believe Eric Saubert will be the 49ers #2 TE, and I decided to keep both Cameron Latu, & Brayden Willis, as both have high upside in my opinion, plus I can’t see the 49ers giving up on Latu after he spent the entire 2023 season on injured reserve, and as for Willis, he has the ability to play TE & even FB.

On the offensive line, I kept the 9 because I believe they’re the best 9 on the roster right now, Ben Bartch has $302,400 of his base salary guaranteed, but that’s not the reason why I kept him, it’s because he can play center, and both guard spots, and of the 9 offensive lineman, I’d expect rookie 6^th-rounder Jarrett Kingston to be the inactive player each week.

When it comes to the defensive ends/edge rushers, the 5 I kept are the only 5 I can see making the team, the 49ers already made Nick Bosa the highest paid non-QB, & defensive player, while they gave Leonard Floyd, & Yetur Gross-Matos significant money, with Floyd averaging $10 million a year, and Gross-Matos $9 million a year, while the other 2 edge rushers, Drake Jackson, & Robert Beal Jr., I believe have upside, but this is going to be a make or break season for Jackson, and I can see the team bringing in a veteran edge rusher after the 53-man roster cuts are made, depending on who’s available on the open market.

With the defensive tackles/nose tackles, I kept 5, as the 49ers gave Javon Hargrave $21 million a year last offseason, while they signed Jordan Elliott to a 2-year deal, worth $7 million, as well as re-signing Kevin Givens, and traded for Maliek Collins, as the team did release Arik Armstead with a post June 1 designation, due to Armstead not being willing to take a pay cut, as for the final IDL spot, I went with Kalia Davis right now, but I can see the FAU product Evan Anderson stealing the spot from Davis.

At linebacker, I went with 5, as I see Fred Warner, & De’Vondre Campbell starting week 1 as the 49ers top 2 LBs, until Dre Greenlaw, who suffered a torn Achilles in the Super Bowl, is able to return, so he’ll start the season on the reserve/PUP list where he’ll have to sit out the first 4 games, & this is the best thing for the 49ers if Greenlaw can’t go week 1, as he wouldn’t go on short term IR, thus not counting towards the max of 8 players that the team can bring back off of IR, as for the other 3 LBs, I believe Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles will start the season as the teams’ strongside linebacker, while 2023 draft picks Dee Winters, & Jalen Graham round out the LB group, and if they keep a 6^th LB & it’s not Greenlaw, I can see the team keeping special teams ace Ezekiel Turner, who I have on the practice squad, as he has no guaranteed money, & is on a minimum salary contract, but I wouldn’t discount him, or the teams 7^th-round pick out of Florida State, Tatum Bethune either.

With the cornerbacks, I kept 5, as I have all as locks, the 49ers drafted Renardo Green in the 2^nd-round, while the teams other cornerbacks would be Mooney Ward, Deommodore Lenoir, Isaac Yiadom, & Rock Ya-Sin, but only Green would be signed past 2024, with those other 4 players set to be UFAs after 2024. If the 49ers opt for a 6^th cornerback, the battle, in my eyes, will come down to the likes of Ambry Thomas, Chase Lucas, Darrell Luter Jr., & Samuel Womack III, with it being a toss up, as I see it, Thomas has no business being near the field, Lucas could be a core special teams player, & backup slot CB, while Luter & Womack are good on special teams, despite Luter’s disaster on the punt return that went off of him in the Super Bowl, which led to a score by the Chiefs, but I don’t blame only him, as former 49ers return man Ray-Ray McCloud III deciding to try & pick the ball up, when he should of just fell on top of it, so both were at fault, while with Womack, he was among the teams inactives, which may show that they don’t have much confidence in him, but he brings both outside and slot experience to the table.

As for the safeties, it’s obvious the 4 I have will be the 4, baring injuries, to make the 53-man roster, with Talanoa Hufanga, & Ji’Ayir Brown starting, while George Odum, & 4^th-rounder Malik Mustapha, and both Odum & Mustapha will be core special teamers in my opinion, and I doubt the team signs a veteran, as someone like Justin Simmons would be great & all, but he also may be too expensive, plus the team needs to develop Brown.

On special teams, the 49ers only have 3 players, Jake Moody at place kicker, Mitch Wishnowsky at punter, & Taybor Pepper at long snapper, as for who will be the return men, I see someone like Isaac Guerendo potentially returning kicks, and 1^st-round pick Ricky Pearsall could return punts, but hopefully the team can figure that out, and whoever it/they are will be dependable, & produces.

With that said, I thank you for reading, and you can follow me on X/Twitter @49erscap.

About Author

Jason Hurley

Die Hard 49ers fan from New York, been covering the 49ers salary cap since 2005, with several different websites, including NinersNation.com, & the now defunct NinerCapHell, I have a track record of being as accurate as possible, & I try to be as thorough as possible.

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