The San Francisco 49ers open training camp on July 30 at SAP Performance Facility in Santa Clara, California. Here's a starting lineup projection:
OFFENSE
Quarterback (Blaine Gabbert): Engineered two fourth-quarter comebacks in 2015, one more than he did his entire time in Jacksonville.
Running back (Carlos Hyde): Averaged 4.1 yards a carry in his first two NFL seasons but is coming off a foot injury that forced him to miss nine games last season.
Receiver (Torrey Smith): Caught a career-low 33 passes in 2015 but led the NFL with 20.1 yards per catch.
Receiver (Bruce Ellington): Former fourth-round draft pick has 42 receptions in two NFL seasons.
Receiver (Quinton Patton): Played in 16 games for the first time in his career and finished third on the team with 30 receptions.
Tight end (Vance McDonald): Caught all three of his touchdowns in 2015 after Gabbert replaced Colin Kaepernick as the starting quarterback.
Left tackle (Joe Staley): Five-time Pro Bowl pick has not missed a game since 2010 and has started all 130 games in which he has played.
Left guard (Zane Beadles): Former Pro Bowl lineman signed a three-year, $9.75 million deal with the 49ers after being cut by Jacksonville.
Center (Daniel Kilgore): Finally seems to be past the leg injury that limited him to 10 games the past two seasons.
Right guard (Joshua Garnett): Second-round draft pick will have to beat out Brandon Thomas for the job.
Right tackle (Trent Brown): Hulking 355-pounder started final two games of 2015.
DEFENSE
Left defensive end (Arik Armstead): Had 19 tackles and two sacks as a rookie last year.
Nose tackle (Ian Williams): A force in the middle but might not be ready for opener after offseason ankle surgery.
Right defensive end (DeForest Buckner): Seventh overall pick in the draft had 67 defensive pressures in final college season.
Outside linebacker (Eli Harold): Will hold down the spot until Aaron Lynch completes four-game NFL suspension.
Outside linebacker (Ahmad Brooks): Has tied for the team lead in sacks each of the past three seasons.
Inside linebacker (NaVorro Bowman): Led the NFL in tackles one year after serious ACL injury.
Inside linebacker (Gerald Hodges): Made 39 tackles over final four games of 2015.
Cornerback (Tramaine Brock): Has to be looking over his shoulder after offseason trade rumors and the addition of three DBs in the draft.
Cornerback (Jimmie Ward): First-round pick in 2014 was in and out of the starting lineup in 2015.
Safety (Antoine Bethea): He was a 2014 Pro Bowl pick but missed nine games in '15 because of a torn pectoral muscle.
Safety (Eric Reid): Coming off a down year after making a combined seven interceptions in 2013 and 2014.
Punter (Bradley Pinion): Second-year punter tied for sixth with 31 punts inside the 20-yard line.
Kicker (Phil Dawson): The 41-year-old is third among active kickers with 457 career field goals.
Long-snapper (Kyle Nelson): Has not missed a game since taking over in 2014.
KR/PR (Bruce Ellington): Averaged 7.2 yards on punt returns and 25.6 on kickoff returns.
































