The six most surprising roster cuts by the San Francisco 49ers that hardly anyone saw coming

The San Francisco 49ers sent a lot of eyebrows skywards with some of their decisions to cut the roster to 53 players on Tuesday.

Several players who were anticipated to land on the initial 53 found themselves, for now at least, as free agents or on the waiver wire.

Among the most surprising cuts made by the 49ers is one that could soon come back to bite them.

OL Jarrett Kingston

No late-round pick on the 49ers’ roster can be considered a safe bet to make the roster given the level of talent San Francisco has at its disposal.

But sixth-rounder Kingston seemed to have done enough with an outstanding preseason in which he allowed only two pressures on 88 pass-blocking snaps, per Pro Football Focus, while playing both right and left guard.

Possessing the versatility to also play tackle having done so during his time in college with USC, Kingston has the potential to be a huge asset as a position-flexible backup with starter-level upside.

The 49ers have more depth on the interior line than in years gone by with the emergence of third-round rookie Dominick Puni, set to start at right guard, and kept around two more versatile interior linemen in Jon Feliciano and Nick Zakelj. Both Feliciano and Zakelj can play guard and center.

But the 49ers are taking a significant risk in letting Kingston go on waivers after what he put on show in preseason. They'll likely hope to get him back on the practice squad. If that doesn't happen and Kingston goes elsewhere, it's a decision they could live to regret with starting left guard Aaron Banks bound for free agency next year.

CB Rock Ya-Sin

Ya-Sin had appeared to be a very strong bet to secure on a place on a deep cornerback depth chart, not least because of the cost of cutting him.

But having to pay over $1 million in dead money did not deter the 49ers from parting with the veteran, instead giving Darrell Luter Jr. and Ambry Thomas the final two spots in a six-man cornerback room.

Luter, last year's fifth-round pick, had impressed during the preseason, which he capped with an endzone interception against the Las Vegas Raiders.

It is the decision to stick with Thomas, who was benched from his role of outside corner on nickel downs for the Super Bowl last season after some disappointing playoff performances, that is more of a surprise. Thomas has been maddeningly inconsistent throughout his career with the 49ers and is expected to miss significant time with a fractured forearm suffered in the first preseason game.

Ya-Sin, as a vested veteran, could have a deal in place to return to the 49ers in the coming days. Right now, though, cutting him looks an eyebrow-raising move.

TEs Eric Saubert and Logan Thomas and OTs Chris Hubbard and Brandon Parker

The 49ers' initial roster looks very light at two positions, tight end and offensive tackle.

San Francisco cut five tight ends on Tuesday, leaving Jake Tonges as the sole backup to All-Pro George Kittle.

Cameron Latu and Brayden Willis, draft picks in 2023, were let go along with undrafted free agent Mason Pline, however, the real surprises came as Saubert and Thomas were also listed among the cuts.

Saubert had seemingly locked down the second tight end role behind Kittle with a strong training camp and preseason, while fellow veteran Thomas was only re-signed last week after a hamstring injury led him to be released earlier this month.

Tackles Hubbard and Parker, each signed this offseason, did not impress the way Saubert did at tight end, but their omissions from the roster leave San Francisco with just two players at the position: Jaylon Moore and Colton McKivitz. All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams is not listed on the active roster as his contract holdout continues.

With the aforementioned Feliciano and Thomas both candidates for injured reserve, logic would suggest that at least two of this quartet will return to the roster before the week is out.