49ers vs. Titans first-half observations: Rookie takes significant step towards winning starting job

The San Francisco 49ers trailed the Tennessee Titans 14-7 at the end of the first half of the team's preseason opener.

While the score is meaningless, the first half of football since the 49ers lost the Super Bowl provided plenty of takeaways, with one of the newer members of the team arguably the standout performer.

Allen makes his QB2 case

The battle to be Brock Purdy's backup has not gone the way many expected, with Brandon Allen outperforming free agent signing Joshua Dobbs for much of training camp.

Allen got all of the first-half reps at quarterback, starting the game ahead of Dobbs with Purdy resting, and he made the most of his opportunity.

Benefiting from impressive pass protection, Allen delivered a poised and confident performance, going 7-13 for 98 yards, including completions of 21 yards to Ronnie Bell and 18 yards to Chris Conley.

Allen also displayed an ability to evade pressure when the Titans did break into the backfield with pressure, his composed effort likely to boost his hopes of winning the QB2 job.

Puni looks the part

With Spencer Burford and Jon Feliciano both dealing with injuries during training camp, the bulk of first-team reps at right guard in training camp have gone to rookie third-round pick Dominick Puni.

Puni has received significant praise for how he has performed and his excellent levels of preparation, which were highlighted by offensive line coach Chris Forester.

The former Kansas Jayhawk furthered his case for starting at that position in year one, holding up extremely well in pass protection and opening holes for the run game. Puni provided an assistant as the pulling guard on Jordan Mason's four-yard touchdown plunge, catching the eye in an area that was identified as a weakness by Foerster.