Three 49ers Whose Stock Rose Against the Raiders

It's not a hot take to say that Chase Lucas was mainly a training camp body entering Day 1. Expecting him to make the final roster cuts was delusional before, especially after how Robert Saleh spoke about him.

"I think a preseason game is cool because 31 other teams get to see what we've been seeing since OTAs," said Saleh. "Chase is a good football player. He's been doing a lot of good things. He's embraced his role and he's finding ways to get better every day."

Saleh essentially said Lucas looks solid but he's not making the team. However, that was after the first preseason game. Lucas has now put together another strong performance.

His outing against the Raiders was better than against the Broncos. Lucas is going to make it tough on the 49ers, which is exactly what he needs if he wants to make the final roster.

LB Nick Martin

Rookie Nick Martin was flying against the Broncos, but he couldn't settle down to tackle. A lot of missed tackles came from him, which was a coaching point from Saleh.

“Nick's doing a good job," Saleh said. "Obviously, he's a big-time running hit linebacker, so he just has to learn how to control himself at the tackle point and come together. It’s getting his feet underneath him and just get his body on the ball carrier until the speed of the game catches up to him."

Sure enough, Martin took those coaching points to heart. He corrected the mistakes he made against the Broncos by playing controlled against the Raiders.

Anytime a player clean up their mistakes from their last game in the next game, it speaks volumes. Coaches eat that up and it surely had to have put a smile on Saleh's face.

Martin still is unlikely to be the starter next to Fred Warner, but he has to be trekking towards being the starter in base packages.

RB Jeff Wilson Jr.

Speaking of players who are strictly there for training camp, Jeff Wilson Jr. might be making a case to be more than that. He ran strongly against the Raiders.

He looked like the only running back who knew the scheme. It's as if he never left the 49ers a few seasons ago. Wilson didn't have any stunning plays, but he showed enough that he belongs.

When the 49ers get healthy at running back, it'll be tough to keep Wilson. However, the 49ers may want to keep him on the practice squad after seeing how well he fits.

That way, if the 49ers endure injuries in the future, they can easily elevate Wilson at any point, knowing he can fit without worries.

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