Why the 49ers Could Miss the Playoffs for the Second Season in a Row

"This team still has some injury concerns, particularly with McCaffrey and George Kittle," writes CBS' R.J. White. "Brandon Aiyuk is going to miss time recovering from an ACL injury. Deebo Samuel is in Washington now. Purdy's big extension means heightened expectations, and the supporting cast will have to grow up quickly to aid a quarterback who was highly inconsistent a year ago. That means Juaun Jennings and Ricky Pearsall have to step into bigger roles right away, and that could have mixed results early.  There's a lot of change in the defense, particularly the secondary. Even though the 49ers don't have a hard schedule, this unit will need some time to gel."

"This is a tough division for the 49ers. Both the Seahawks and Rams finished with 10 wins a season ago and the Cardinals had eight. None of those teams appear to be taking a major step back, which means even San Francisco being healthier might not matter within the NFC West. Eight NFC teams won 10 or more games a season ago, so getting into the playoffs is going to be challenge even with positive regression."

White didn't even mention that Jennings is sitting out of training camp with what the team is calling a calf injury after he requested a contract extension or a trade, one or the other. So far, the 49ers have given him neither, and he hasn't shown up to practice even as a spectator since the players first put on pads last week.

Which means that the 49ers' starting wide receivers currently are Ricky Pearsall and Demarcus Robinson. And Robinson most likely will get suspended for the first two or three games of the season. So the 49ers are thin at receiver.

In addition, both starting cornerbacks -- Deommodore Lenoir and Renardo Green -- are currently injured. Lenoir has hip irritation and Green has a pulled hamstring. Their backups are Tre Brown and Dallis Flowers, a couple of liabilities. So the 49ers are thin at cornerback.

Finally, the 49ers' starting right tackle Colton McKivitz missed Saturday's practice with what is presumed to be an injury. His replacement was Austen Pleasants, a former undrafted free agent who never has started a game in the NFL. So the 49ers are thin at offensive linemen.

As long as the 49ers starting wide receivers, cornerbacks and offensive linemen all stay healthy for the entire season, the 49ers should be one of the better teams in the NFC. But that's a lot to ask for.