Santa Clara – There’s nothing quite like real competition to sharpen a team, and the 49ers got plenty of it Tuesday as the Tennessee Titans arrived for a spirited joint practice ahead of Thursday night’s preseason matchup.
San Francisco and the Titans will meet Thursday at 6 p.m. at Levi’s Stadium for the first and only preseason game, but the intensity was already on full display during joint practice.
What was supposed to be a competitive workout quickly became heated, with multiple altercations breaking out between the teams. Two defensive players were ejected from practice following the fights, most of which occurred on the defensive side of the ball.
Despite the tension, there were plenty of highlights throughout the session. Players generated cheers and reactions with impressive catches, hard tackles and timely interceptions, showcasing the kind of game-like competition both teams were looking for.
But 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was not pleased with the altercations, making it clear that there is a line between playing with intensity and losing control.
With Thursday night’s preseason game approaching, Tuesday’s practice provided the 49ers with a valuable test, and a reminder that competition can bring out both the best and worst emotions on the football field.
Despite being without several of their top running backs and big-name receivers, the San Francisco 49ers came away from their joint practice with the Tennessee Titans encouraged by the team’s overall performance.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said the 49ers moved the ball well but acknowledged there were still plays the team needed to make.
“I thought that we moved the ball well, but there’s a number of plays that we didn’t make,” said Shanahan. “I love the three backs that we had throughout practice. Them just be able to get through it and get their assignments, respect to those guys for it.”
One player who caught Shanahan’s attention was wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling, who recently returned to practice after dealing with tightness.
“It’s been good to get him back. Some of the stuff he did that first week, and then he had some tightness and stuff, similar to Christian. We took him off for, I think a week. I want to guess this was his fourth day back, so I just love him getting the reps. We love his talent. We love the character and just how he plays. It’s such a different situation than Christian. We need to get him ready to play an NFL game, and it takes a while for rookies to do that.”
With the 49ers set to host the Titans on Thursday night for their first and only preseason game, Shanahan indicated that most of San Francisco’s starters are unlikely to play.
However, the coaching staff will take injuries from Tuesday’s practice into consideration before making final decisions.
“We have, but we haven’t told any of the players yet,” Shanahan explained. “There won’t be many starters playing. We’ll see with injuries today and stuff. That doesn’t mean none, but we’ve got to balance that out. We haven’t told the players yet, so wait until we do that with them this afternoon.”
QB Brock Purdy – Press Conference
Can you take us through the good and bad things you saw today?
“I think just going up against a different scheme. Obviously, we practiced against [Tennessee Titans head coach Robert] Saleh and his scheme all last year and whatnot, but it was nice to switch it up, go against those guys and their ones and feeling the physicality, the violence from just another team. And then also being able to move the ball on them kind of thing and get some good reps with [WR] Deebo [Samuel Sr.], [WR De’Zhaun] Stribling and stuff like that, I think for me was huge. D-Rob [WR Demarcus Robinson] had a great day. Having the offensive line feel the run game and just the urgency with that, they did a great job. So, I think that was good. Some stuff to work on is, I guess for me, just feeling like, how I have at practice the last couple days. Like when I went up against a new defense for the first time this year, it’s like still being aggressive and being quick in my reads and stuff. That’s something that I’ll watch the film and see where I was at today, but those are just my initial thoughts.”
How big a step is it to see Stribling in practice and then to see him make some plays against another team? How big a step in your mind is that?
“Yeah, it’s huge. I mean, obviously going up against our guys, it’s a starting NFL defense and he’s shown that time and time again. But, it was cool just to switch it up today, go up against different guys that we haven’t played against and see him make plays and run our offense and be on time and do his job and things like that. So, it was good. I know there were a couple routes that we could still talk about and whatnot, but it fires me up that we have stuff that we can keep getting better at. But, he showed a lot of flashes and stuff today, so I was excited about it.”
You hit him on one over the middle on a cross, and then TE Jake Tonges on the next play where you also layer kinged it over a linebacker. Did you hear defensive coordinator Raheem Morris give you that nickname of the layer king and do you take that to heart that that’s a great asset?
“Yeah, I mean, he had told me, I guess on the field that he’d said that to the media. And then our quarterback coach Mick Lombardi, he doesn’t like the word layer. He thinks everything should be driven and you throw the appropriate ball. So, I can’t really say anything about the layered ball, but yeah it’s cool that Raheem notices that. So, I guess it’s a part of my game, but obviously I like to think I can make any throw on the field, not just that one, but yeah.”
After this offseason with specific things that you wanted to improve on, at this point in camp, how do you feel about where you’re at with those things, especially now going against another defense?
“I think just playing with urgency with my feet, having a good base, those are the fundamental things [offensive coordinator] Mick [Lombardi], [offensive coordinator] Klay [Kubiak], Kyle and I watched early in the offseason when we came back for OTAs. I’ve been trying to hone in on that all offseason. And I think coming out to camp, it’s just allowed me to play fast. It’s allowed me to be on time with my throws and make any kind of throw with where I’m at in the pocket because I have a good base and my feet are good. So, that’s the one thing that comes to mind. There’s some other things, but I feel like if I can just continue to do that, I can continue to take my game to the next level.”
How important has it been for you that Deebo’s able to be out there, especially in the run game with your top four guys out?
“Yeah, it’s been huge. Obviously, what Deebo can do is awesome. He can run routes on the outside, in the slot, come back in the backfield run routes, can run the ball from the backfield. So, having him being able to help out with the run game right now, just with our numbers and stuff at running back has been huge. It’s good for him too, to be able to come back into the system and get those reps and have him being able to read out a run and bounce back gaps and make cuts. So, that’s been good for him, but also it’s been fun, like I said, having him back there to be able to run routes and have really good matchups and he’s still explosive and still the same Deebo that we know. He made multiple plays today even, where if you get him the ball, man, he’s going to break tackles. If we’re live, I was like, ‘hey, that’s a broken tackle, that’s a touchdown,’ or whatever. He’s a playmaker, so glad to have our guy back.”
Do you want preseason reps in every game or have you guys talked about that? How many series do you think you need in the preseason to prepare for Week One?
“I mean, last couple years it’s been the last two games I get a drive or two depending on the situations and just try to have that mindset of getting ready for a game, getting in pads, getting hit. But also, you want to be smart and safe and get to the regular season healthy. So those are things that we’ll talk about and whatnot. But, I do think it’s big just in terms of getting a feel for an NFL game. That’s what we’ve done in the past. We haven’t really talked about anything yet. I’m sure we will soon, but I guess we’ll see.”
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