Week 1 brought a little bit of everything for the former 49ers spread around the league: a slot-heavy debut, a chain-moving security blanket, a guard holding his own in the run game, and a few defenders who had busy afternoons without much to show for it. It’s early, of course, but this is the first real snapshot of how eight ex-San Francisco players fit with their new teams.
Kendrick Bourne made the cleanest offensive impact. He was a major part of the Cardinals’ passing game, drawing more targets than Mike Evans and turning all eight of his looks into catches for 75 yards.
Three of those plays qualified as impact snaps, and even with an average depth of target of just five yards, Bourne still piled up 40 air yards. He also came through on his lone contested catch and kept the offense moving for Arizona, looking like Jacoby Brissett’s reliable outlet whenever the quarterback needed one.
Jauan Jennings’ Vikings debut was quieter in the box score but still notable in usage. He was on the field for 27 passing snaps and ran 19 routes, but got just one target, a shot 30 yards downfield.
A big chunk of his work came from the slot, where he lined up on 68.4% of his routes. His presence also showed up in the run game.
Spencer Burford opened at left guard for the Raiders and gave them a mixed but workable debut. He allowed four pressures across 31 pass-blocking snaps, though that number alone doesn’t tell the whole story.
The Raiders were pounding the Dolphins on the ground, and Burford was part of that push, with 10 rushes for 65 yards behind him. He even had one standout rep where he pancaked his man after moving him a gap over.
Brian Robinson got a short but varied Falcons debut. He played 18 snaps and handled kickoff returns too, bringing one back 40 yards to start the third quarter.
On offense, he had multiple carries in the first quarter and finished with nine rushes for 31 yards. The production wasn’t efficient - a 33.3% success rate and -1.39 rushing EPA - but his best run came after he was hit in the backfield, bounced off the tackle, and still picked up 14 yards.
Three of his carries went for no gain or losses.
Jordan Elliott logged 20 snaps for Robert Saleh’s Titans, finishing with two tackles and a run stop. He also dropped into coverage and was charged with a reception allowed. On nine pass-rush snaps, he didn’t register any pressure.
Rob Beal, now going by Rob, saw action on 29 snaps for the Dolphins. Fourteen came on defense, with the rest spread across special teams.
He was in the rotation early, getting on the field in the first quarter, and his lone tackle came seven yards downfield on Ashton Jeanty. He didn’t record any pressure stats.
Skyy Moore played 16 snaps for the Packers and got a look on a first-quarter reverse that was wiped out by a penalty. He’s Green Bay’s returner, and he also had one target. On 4th & 2 with 1:31 left, Jordan Love missed him, though Moore appeared to have a step and might have taken it to the end zone if the throw connected.
Dee Winters had the busiest defensive debut of the group, playing 39 snaps for Dallas. The results weren’t pretty.
He finished with four tackles and a stop, but all four passes thrown his way were completed for 40 yards, leaving him with a 108.3 quarterback rating allowed. Winters was Dallas’ fourth-lowest-graded defender, per PFF.
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For the 49ers, Samuels debut mattered because this was never just about adding another familiar name to the receiver room, but about whether the move would actually hold up once the games counted. His early production helped San Francisco in Week 1, yet it also sharpened the larger conversation around how these offseason bets are being judged almost immediately, especially when a single game can make one front office look prescient and another look exposed before September is even underway. [Read more 🡒]