Chances are, when the San Francisco 49ers announce their initial 53-man roster for the 2025 season, veteran cornerback Dallis Flowers won't be among those listed.
That said, the Niners certainly set the context for the 28-year-old defensive back to be a potential dark horse, someone who might impress enough during training camp and the preseason to seize one of the final spots on the cornerbacking depth chart.
Flowers, who signed with the Indianapolis Colts after going undrafted in 2021, earned his way onto Indy's roster his rookie year largely due to his return prowess on kickoffs, but that job largely evaporated his second season.
After a one-year tenure with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers practice squad in 2024, San Francisco picked him up last May on a one-year deal.
49ers' CB shortage could open door for Dallis Flowers
The 49ers mostly have their starting cornerbacks penciled in for the upcoming season despite losing All-Pro Charvarius Ward in free agency.
Renardo Green is slated to be one of the boundary options, and after the Niners used a third-round pick on Upton Stout to (hopefully) secure nickel duties, Deommodore Lenoir is scheduled to be outside full time now.
After that, though, there are plenty of untested options.
Tre Brown, Tre Avery, Derrick Canteen and Chase Lucas are among many of the other fringe corners vying for a roster spot this season, so it's safe to assume Flowers' hopes for surviving cuts are slim.
At the same time, though, none of those names are exactly surefire additions on the strong side of the bubble.
Flowers carries zero in guaranteed money for his current contract, meaning the Niners can part ways with him at any point without incurring any dead cap hit. And he's never started more than six games in a single season since his rookie-year 13-start effort.
That said, finding some footing under coordinator Robert Saleh could ultimately lead to Flowers' emergence as a reliable depth option, especially if he outperforms at least two or three of the aforementioned names also vying for roster depth.
Although one can fairly wonder if San Francisco would rather not want to rely on him too much.
Read more from Niner Noise