Assistant head athletic trainer Manny Rivera of the San Francisco 49ers works on Deommodore Lenoir during training camp at the SAP Performance Facility on Aug. 1, 2023, in Santa Clara, Calif.
Michael Zagaris/Getty Images
High intrigue surrounding the San Francisco 49ers’ quarterback competition this offseason has provided some unintended insight into another potential cause for concern with this team — one that lingers from last season.
This tidbit comes courtesy of Cam Inman, a sports reporter for Bay Area News Group, who included a fascinating note in a mailbag published Wednesday about the 49ers’ defense: “Meanwhile, the 49ers’corners are still seeking their first — FIRST! — interception in 11-on-11 action this camp.”
Yes, hidden in every single training camp update about Brock Purdy, Trey Lance and Sam Darnold is the fact that the corners have been unable to snag a pick for themselves. Interceptions have happened, of course — just no big plays from the cornerbacks specifically.
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That doesn’t mean that the corners have been inactive during camp; reports of Charvarius Ward breakups are sprinkled into daily camp assessments, for instance. It’s just a little surprising that no one listed at that position has gotten the ball.
But those old enough to remember last season might recall that the major weakness of the NFL’s top defense was its secondary. Recently promoted No. 2 corner Deommodore Lenoir, for example, got Moss’d by A.J. Green, who called it a career less than a month later, and he struggled against teams with a solid second receiving option. He showed out in the playoffs, getting picks in consecutive postseason games, but analytics site Pro Football Focus gave him an abysmal 55.9 rating (out of 100) for the entirety of his work last season.
If Ward or Lenoir gets hurt, there’s not much promise in the team’s corner depth. Backup Samuel Womack has had an inconsistent camp so far, with a high of a remarkable breakup in late July and a low of getting utterly embarrassed on a pass from Trey Lance — a guy who’s had some tough discourse about his ability to be an NFL quarterback.
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The lack of turnovers from the