49ers notebook: Right guard competition heating up, Kittle contract update

Every August, a hot topic surrounding an NFL training camp is evaluating the open competitions for starting jobs. Only practices haven’t started yet, and reporters haven’t gotten the introductions to those competitions because the offseason program was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Which makes the tidbit from right tackle Mike McGlinchey on Monday notable, when he said the 49ers are rotating Daniel Brunskill and veteran Tom Compton with the starters at right guard during walkthroughs before real practices begin Aug. 17.

Right guard appears to be the most up-in-the-air camp battle for among the new starters on offense. (Trent Williams is the unquestioned starter at left tackle in place of the retired Joe Staley, and some combination of Kendrick Bourne, Trent Taylor, Jalen Hurd and first-round pick Brandon Aiyuk will try to pick up the slack following receiver Emmanuel Sanders’ departure to the Saints in free agency.)

But right guard is a bit more fuzzy. Unlike receiver, a guard would typically play every snap on offense and not rotate in platoon. Increasing the difficulty for San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan is trying to identify the best option in a truncated offseason with far less practice time than normal.

McGlinchey alluded to the importance of chemistry for the offensive line, which is a process that has to be expedited following the release of Mike Person, who then retired.

“It’s never really quite as simple as you want it to be, especially if you don’t have an offseason to get used to playing next to a couple people and we got some guys filling in in some new spots,” McGlinchey said. “There’s a lot of nuances to it, there’s a lot of different techniques that need to be applied in different spots and it’s good to have a background in that to get the ball rolling for us.”

It’s no surprise Brunskill and Compton are splitting first-team reps. They both have experience in Shanahan’s system which should give them a leg up over others like rookie Colton McKivitz, who played tackle at West Virginia but might be best suited for guard in the NFL.

Brunskill played both guard and tackle in his Swiss Army-knife role in 2019. He started four games in place of McGlinchey in the first half of the season, started at left tackle against the Ravens in late November, and replaced Person at right guard for the final two regular season games, which included massive Week 17 victory in Seattle.

Brunskill was one of the 49ers’ underrated story lines of 2019 after playing previously at the defunct Allegiance of American Football (AAF) before playing an important role for the NFC champions. There wasn’t much drop off when the 49ers spent a month without McGlinchey and Staley, who were one of the better tackle tandems in the NFL last season when available.

Compton, meanwhile, is entering his ninth NFL season after spending his first four with Washington, where Shanahan was the offensive coordinator. He was a sixth-round pick in 2012 that has carved out a decent career, starting 34 of his 99 games. San Francisco would be his fifth team in five seasons after playing for Shanahan in Atlanta (2016), Chicago (2017), Minnesota (2018) and the New York Jets (2019).

The 49ers also appear to have more depth along the offensive line than they have since Shanahan took over in 2017. If Compton wins the starting job, Brunskill would be in the mix to be the “swing tackle” in light of Shon Coleman’s decision to opt out of the season for health concerns.

Justin Skule also started games at tackle last season, including holding Myles Garrett to no sacks against the Browns, and McKivitz could be a candidate to fill in at all guard and tackle spots. Ben Garland, who started at center late in the season and throughout the playoffs, appears in line to retain his backup role behind Weston Richburg.

Kittle contract update

Star tight end George Kittle, who was voted the No. 7 player in the NFL by his peers this offseason, still doesn’t have a new contract as the team is a week away from beginning practices.

Kittle’s camp has been quiet surrounding the talks while national outlets have reported the two sides aren’t particularly close. It’s unknown if Kittle would hold out from practice if an agreement isn’t struck before practices begin next week. He’s set to make $2.1 million this season after getting $645,000 in base salary in 2019.

Mike Silver of the NFL Network offered up his thoughts Monday, noting this could be a big week for negotiations.

“I talked to Kittle’s agent, Jack Bechta, yesterday. He said progress has been minimal, and later reinforced that by texting me an inchworm emoji to underscore that fact,” Silver said.

“And, it’s not just money. There is structure and how much money a player like George Kittle could get up front, how much would actually be guaranteed. And at the heart of all this has been somewhat of a philosophical divide. The 49ers, who say, ‘Listen, we want to pay you more than any tight end ever, because you’re the greatest tight end.’ And Kittle’s camp which will say, ‘Don’t view me as a tight end. I was just voted the seventh-best player in football at any position.’”

The market for tight ends, of course, has been depressed relative to other positions. Austin Hooper of the Browns signed the largest contract in the league for tight ends with his $44 million deal over four seasons.

But Kittle could be looking for a salary more commensurate with receivers or offensive tackles, who are often the most highly paid positions on offense behind quarterbacks. Kittle has been San Francisco’s top pass catcher over the past two seasons while being instrumental as a run blocker.

So while a contract paying something in the neighborhood of $13 to $15 million per season would obliterate the tight end market, it would still be significantly less than the $16 to $22 million receivers and tackles have received lately.

Armstead endorses signing of former college teammate

Dion Jordan was in the final year of his college career when Arik Armstead was a freshman with the Oregon Ducks in 2012. The only overlapped for one year, but Jordan made a positive impact on Armstead before they both became first-round picks in their respective NFL drafts.

The two were reunited last week when Jordan inked a one-year deal to provide depth at defensive end. Armstead, meanwhile, signed a five-year, $85 million extension in March.

“Dion was a guy I looked up to and have for a long time, especially in college being a freshman, he was a senior big man on campus,” Armstead said. “And I always appreciated him for sticking up for me and not being one of those seniors who talk down to freshmen and try to haze freshmen. So Dion was always my big homie and I loved playing with him in college and being able to learn from him.”