Why is 49ers’ Carver Willis getting another start at LG? The rookie needs the reps

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — It’s a position that lines up mere feet from the quarterback. It’s one that’s been conspicuous in the San Francisco 49ers’ biggest moments under Kyle Shanahan. And, heading into Thursday’s preseason finale, it’s not resolved.

In fact, you could argue the team is further away from a solution at left guard today, two days after training camp ended and six days before the 49ers board a flight to Australia, than it was when the summer session began a month ago.

The most experienced candidate, Robert Jones, is out with a calf injury, although Shanahan is optimistic Jones will be back at practice next week. Another, Brett Toth, has been dealing with a concussion since early August. And Connor Colby, who seemed comfortably in the lead at the start of training camp, has largely been relegated to the second-team unit in recent weeks. Even Austen Pleasants, who drew more snaps at left guard in recent weeks, is now battling a knee injury.

That’s left Carver Willis, a fourth-round rookie, taking the lion’s share of the first-team repetitions over the past two weeks. Willis is in line to start his second straight preseason game today in Las Vegas.

All the snaps Willis has been getting lately underscore two things:

First, he badly needs them. He played tackle exclusively in college at Washington, and converting to guard in Shanahan’s system is not easy. Colton McKivitz, who was also a college tackle, tried it when he was a rookie in 2020 and was cut the following season. When he returned to the team, it was at tackle, his position ever since.

“It’s extremely hard,” McKivitz said. “I went through it as a rookie, and it didn’t work out for me.”

All the repetitions Willis is getting this close to the season, however, also show how much the 49ers believe in him. His first 11-on-11 snap with the first-string offense two weeks ago was rough. He gave up a sack to defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa and allowed a second one later in that practice.

But he’s improved since, and there’s hope that if he maintains his current trajectory, the 49ers will be able to count on him during the regular season.

“He’s just got to keep getting better every day,” offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak said. “But I like where he’s at. I like the way he’s working. He’s developing. He’s a young player, and we’ve just got to keep pushing him.”

Outsiders tend to fixate on pass protection when evaluating offensive linemen. The 49ers, however, scrutinize run blocking, especially following a season in which the team’s per-carry average, a robust 4.52 yards in the first eight seasons under Shanahan, dropped to 3.78 yards. It was the first time in his tenure the average fell below 4 yards.

Carver emphasized that the 49ers’ run-blocking scheme is an extremely precise choreography — a Chorus Line but with 315-pound defensive tackles trying to blow up the performance.

His biggest issue right now is that he’s slightly out of step. Or in his words: “My angles in the run game aren’t very complementary of the guys next to me.”

A false step by the left guard on a running play isn’t something a casual observer usually picks up on, but it is obvious — like a sour note during a piano recital — to an expert like offensive line coach Chris Foerster.

“There are so many plays where you can see that the four guys next to me — their hips are on a different angle than mine,” Willis said. “For me right now, it’s studying that aiming point and running on our angles, setting our backside shoulder, all that kind of stuff.”

One benefit to playing left guard for the 49ers, he said, is that he has Trent Williams, who’s played 11,334 career snaps, to his left and Jake Brendel (4,376 career snaps) to the right. And that means he often gets real-time coaching in the huddle.

“Those guys have been so great,” Willis said. “They’ll tell you when you did well. Be like, ‘Hey, great job on that. That’s exactly what we need.’ Or it’s, ‘Hey, come on. You have to see that quicker.’ Or, ‘You’ve got to get hands on the guy.’ I’ve got a combined 23 years of experience next to me. That’s huge. Our vets have been so helpful.”

Odds and ends

• Shanahan said there might be “a couple” of Week 1 starters on the field to begin today’s game, but that it will be similar to the preseason opener against Tennessee, when few starters played.

• He said he hopes defensive end Nick Bosa, who hasn’t practiced since Aug. 3 due to knee tendinitis, will practice next week. The team will practice Monday through Wednesday before traveling to Melbourne, Australia, later Wednesday.

• Receivers Mike Evans and Jacob Cowing missed Tuesday’s practice with groin strains. They are on track to return next week, Shanahan said. He gave a similar timetable for quarterback Kurtis Rourke (ribs), cornerback Upton Stout (hip flexor) and Pleasants (knee).

• Offensive tackle Vederian Lowe (high ankle), receiver Christian Kirk (calf) and running back Isaac Guerendo (pectoral) are among the candidates to begin the season on an injury list, like physically unable to perform or injured reserve.