More than a handful of players fully changed their narratives when the San Francisco 49ers pulled off a stunning 22-19 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders in preseason Week 2.
Of course, the discourse centered around embattled kicker Jake Moody, whose 59-yard game-winner as time expired helped overshadow an ugly 53-yard not-close miss earlier in the game.
But, as turbulent as his performance was, there were plenty of other notable storylines that are worth taking into account as we look at the Niners' 90-man roster and try to figure out who's safe (and who isn't) heading into the final week of exhibition action.
Case in point, seventh-round rookie guard Connor Colby was a steep riser a week ago, which bumped him up in consideration.
After last Saturday's bout in Vegas, perhaps not so much.
Let's see where Colby ranks on our latest bubble watch for the eventual Week 1 regular-season roster.
49ers' post-preseason Week 2 roster-bubble watch
* denotes rookie
Quarterback
Lock: Brock Purdy, Mac Jones
Strong bubble: None
Weak bubble: Carter Bradley
Long shot: Kurtis Rourke*
Bradley justified San Francisco in keeping him over recently released Tanner Mordecai by performing well enough against Las Vegas, but that won't automatically telegraph into a spot on the 53-man roster.
Rourke, recovering from an ACL injury, likely redshirts his rookie season.
Running back
Lock: Kyle Juszczyk, Isaac Guerendo, Jordan James*, Christian McCaffrey
Strong bubble: Corey Kiner*, Patrick Taylor Jr., Jeff Wilson Jr.
Weak bubble: Ke'Shawn Vaughn
Long shot: None
Guerendo, James, Taylor and now Kiner are all injured, creating all kinds of uncertainty at the position.
Kiner, in particular, has a high-ankle sprain that could result in starting the regular season on an injured list, meaning Wilson's chances of surviving pre-Week 1 cuts increase.
Wide receiver
Lock: Jacob Cowing, Jauan Jennings, Ricky Pearsall, Jordan Watkins*
Strong bubble: Junior Bergen*, Robbie Chosen, Russell Gage Jr.
Weak bubble: Brandon Aiyuk, Isaiah Hodgins, Terique Owens, Demarcus Robinson
Long shot: Malik Turner
More fluidity here, thanks to injuries. Aiyuk is likely to miss the first six weeks because of his own ACL and MCL recovery, while Robinson is awaiting a probable three-game suspension, which would temporarily bump him off the 53-man roster.
Watkins' own ankle sprain creates doubt, but he is likely at risk for missing only a week or two, meaning fringe receivers like Gage and Chosen stand a good chance of hanging around, particularly after the latter recorded a team-best 92 yards on five grabs in Vegas.
Tight end
Lock: Luke Farrell, George Kittle
Strong bubble: Jake Tonges, Brayden Willis
Weak bubble: None
Long shot: None
The 49ers may keep all four of their tight ends after parting ways with Ross Dwelley before the Raiders game.
Offensive line
Lock: Trent Williams, Ben Bartch, Jake Brendel, Colton McKivitz, Dominick Puni
Strong bubble: Spencer Burford, Matt Hennessy, Drew Moss*, Nick Zakelj
Weak bubble: Connor Colby*, Drake Nugent, Austen Pleasants
Long shot: Isaac Alarcon, Isaiah Prince
Colby's stock fell dramatically last Saturday, and Niners Nation's Kyle Posey summed it up nicely:
"Connor Colby’s potential dress rehearsal as a starter did not go as planned. He allowed a couple of run stops and was overpowered on a few reps. On the final third down of the first drive, former first-round pick Tyree Wilson walked Colby into Purdy’s lap with a bull rush, which ultimately ruined the play. Colby had a similar rep early in the drive on a running play, where the defensive tackle easily crossed his face.
On the first play of the second drive, Colby falls to the ground off contact. It looked like strength was an issue there as well. There were two plays where Colby’s pass set was too wide, and he stayed engaged with a defender while the Raiders ran a stunt and came free up the middle. He’s a seventh-rounder after all, but Colby didn’t look like he’s ready to start if Ben Bartch’s injury sidelines him in the regular season."
Zakelj's stock, meanwhile, is on the rise. It seems like San Francisco wants him to be the backup center behind Brendel.
Defensive line
Lock: Nick Bosa, Alfred Collins*, Jordan Elliott, Bryce Huff, C.J. West*, Mykel Williams*
Strong bubble: Evan Anderson, Robert Beal Jr., Kalia Davis, Sam Okuayinonu, Sebastian Valdez*
Weak bubble: Yetur Gross-Matos, Jaylon Allen, Shakel Brown, Jonathan Garvin
Long shot: William Bradley-King, Kevin Givens, Demone Harris, Bruce Hector
Collins has been a major disappointment, but that's been alleviated largely by Valdez's own surprising emergence, and it'll be tough to keep the undrafted rookie off the 53-man roster.
Gross-Matos' knee issues keep lingering, while Givens is slated to miss considerable time with a pectoral injury.
Behind the presumed starters headlined by Bosa, there are plenty of question marks.
Linebacker
Lock: Nick Martin*, Chazz Surratt, Fred Warner, Dee Winters
Strong bubble: Tatum Bethune, Curtis Robinson
Weak bubble: Stone Blanton*, Luke Gifford, Trevis Gipson, Jalen Graham
Long shot: None
Martin bounced back nicely versus the Raiders after a disastrous NFL debut the previous week, but the rookie is now competing with Bethune for backup duties behind Warner and Winters.
Assuming the 49ers keep six backers, special teams will have to play a pivotal role, and both Surratt and Robinson can assist there.
Secondary
Lock: Renardo Green, Chase Lucas, Siran Neal, Upton Stout*, Deommodore Lenoir, Ji'Ayir Brown, Marques Sigle*
Strong bubble: Tre Brown, Dallis Flowers, Darrell Luter Jr., Richie Grant, Jason Pinnock
Weak bubble: Jaylen Mahoney
Long shot: Derrick Canteen*, Fabian Moreau, Jakob Robinson*, Malik Mustapha
No other fringe player on the Niners roster has improved his chances more than Lucas, who was great against Denver and then cemented himself as preseason MVP with a dynamic performance at Allegiant Stadium, tallying one sack and a momentum-shifting interception.
As promising as Stout was during training camp, starting Lucas at nickel cornerback might be a no-brainer now.
Sigle, meanwhile, seems to be the future at safety. The only question is whether Pinnock or Brown start alongside him until Malik Mustapha returns from last year's ACL tear.
Special teams
Lock: Jon Weeks, Thomas Morstead
Strong bubble: Jake Moody
Weak bubble: None
Long shot: None
Moody earned the right to proverbially live to see another day with his game-winning try, but the fact we're talking about a roller-coaster ride here tells you everything you need to know about whether or not he's fully safe.
Round 3-drafted kickers need to be automatic and consistent, and Moody is anything but. If he wasn't a third-round draftee, he would have been released long ago.
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