SANTA CLARA — Football is back.
Or something resembling NFL football, at least.
But, jokes aside, let’s be clear about this: In preseason game No. 1, the depth of the 49ers showed some serious promise against some serious competition. The Tennessee Titans had their first team on the field for the first three series on both offense and defense. And the Niners more than stood their own. One could argue they beat them. (Don’t worry about the scoreboard in the preseason.)
Here are the studs and duds from preseason game No. 1.
STUDS
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**De’Zhaun Stribling • WR**
In a game where few probable regular-season impact players were present for the 49ers, Stribling looked like a guy who didn’t need the preseason seasoning. He had six catches for 66 yards (a minus-4 pop-pass counts as a reception, but I’m not counting it — bad play call, worse blocking), including an impressive hands catch for 10 yards on the second drive and a beautiful over-the-shoulder catch for 32 yards along the sideline on the third.
His quarterback, Kurtis Rourke, didn’t have the best placement to start Thursday’s game, but Stribling came down with all but one inaccurate throw.
Also of note: he was working often as a Z receiver — a spot that he’d need to play to be on the field in the Niners’ go-to 21 personnel package.
**Jordan Watkins • WR**
Was fine as a pass catcher when the game was interesting — he did have a nice catch that was called back by an offensive line hold and a solid quick out at the end of the second quarter — but he was notable, in a good way, as a kick and punt returner. He let one kickoff bounce out of bounds; that’s impressive awareness, and had a tricky but calm fair catch on a booming Tommy Townsend punt. That’s how you cement a roster spot.
**Corliss Waitman • P**
I won’t lie, I was a bit confused as to why he was selected over rookie Jack Bouwmeester to be the punter for this game — and, ostensibly, the rest of the season. Then he dropped two absolute dimes and a second-half bomb in this game and I was confused no longer. Great call, John Lynch!
**Kurtis Rourke • QB**
Rourke was a bit off-balance to start, but once the game was well underway, he started dotting the ball all around the field — mainly to Stribling. His second-quarter rib injury effectively ended the interesting portion of this game. Suffice it to say if the Niners had a third quarterback, he’d be it.
**Gracen Halton • DT**
An absolute menace, with serious push again and again, particularly in the last series for the Titans’ offensive starters, where he had three great reps in the run and the pass game, beating Peter Skoronski, one of the better guards in football, at least twice. That speaks volumes.
**Sincere McCormick • RB**
Way more impressive than Patrick Taylor as a runner, despite operating behind the same offensive line. Sure, the Titans had their second-string defense in, but I’d rather see more 35 than 32 moving forward.
**Nick Martin • LB**
Was certainly credited for too many tackles, and is still washed out far too often to be someone the Niners can count on in the regular season, but had some really nice plays as well, particularly in the second half. (He also had an electable hit.) The good outweighs the bad here. I think. Maybe. Let’s go with it.
**James Thompson • DT**
The undrafted free agent has one thing that’s NFL-ready: his hands. Goodness, does he deliver a punch. It’s such a punch, in fact, that he might not need anything else. He was a force in the second half.
DUDS
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**Alfred Collins • DT**
Was better as the game progressed, but was pushed around easily on the first two series of the game. Inauspicious for a player who is supposed to be an immovable mountain.
**Marquese Sigle • S**
Has seen almost exclusively first-team reps in practice, but not only suited up for this game, he received prodigious first-half playing time. Had a nice run-game tackle on the Titans’ fourth drive, but didn’t cover himself in glory at the start.
**Brandon Parker and Austen Pleasants • OTs**
Tough watch. Trent Williams and Colton McKivitz should renegotiate their contracts today.
**Adrian Martinez • QB**
Appeared to be in over his head from the moment he entered the game, despite not facing the Titans’ best. Now might be a good time to note that the Hamilton Tiger-Cats hold Martinez’s CFL negotiation rights.