49ers mailbag: Why no splashy trade? Which players are on the chopping blocking?

We did something slightly different with this week’s mailbag, which usually is written on Tuesday, the 49ers’ day off.

I solicited questions Thursday morning, then spent the locker-room and press conference portions of the day trying to find the answers.

Thanks for all the great questions, which as usual have been lightly edited for clarity.

Do you think not making a big move at the trade deadline is a reflection they aren’t that high on this team or was it truly all about fit? – Jake S.

I think it’s largely about upcoming seasons and wanting as many (inexpensive) mid-round draft choices as they can get. The Athletic’s Dianna Russini, for example, reported the New York Giants wanted a late fourth-round pick or early fifth for pass rusher Azeez Ojulari. The Tennessee Titans likely wanted something similar for Arden Key. The 49ers, meanwhile, wanted to hang onto their mid-round picks.

Did they make the right choice? It’ll depend on the collective health of Nick Bosa, Leonard Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos over the last nine games. Bosa, incidentally, has been limited this week with a hip issue. He barely practiced on Thursday.

With a lot of players coming back from injured reserve soon, who do you think is on the chopping block? – Andy B.

I know a lot of fans would like to see Week 3 scapegoat Ronnie Bell off the 53-man roster. But that might not happen this week with receiver Chris Conley (hamstring) likely out of action for Sunday and Deebo Samuel (ribs) and Jauan Jennings (hip) dealing with their own injuries.

Other possibilities:

S Adrian Amos: The 49ers just added Tashaun Gipson Sr. to the practice squad. Do they need two safeties in their 30s?

G Ben Bartch. He’s been inactive every week so far and the 49ers would have an abundance of guard candidates once Jon Feliciano is off injured reserve. The 49ers opened Feliciano’s practice window this week.

C/G Nick Zakelj. Feliciano could have an impact on Zakelj, too. The 49ers might think it will be easier to get the inexperienced Zakelj through waivers and onto the practice squad than it to get Bartch, who has 20 career starts, there.

TE Brayden Willis: They only promoted him from the practice squad because another team was going to poach him. That is, they’d like to keep him around to develop but he’s not integral this season.

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When Feliciano returns, who becomes the first guard off the bench between him and Spencer Burford? – Zach M.

Listening to offensive line coach Chris Foerster on Thursday, it sounded like Feliciano would be the top backup at guard or center once the team feels he’s back in full. Burford has been practicing at guard and tackle, which makes him valuable on game days, but I think the 49ers like Feliciano a little more than Burford at guard.

How is Jordan Mason’s shoulder? The practice report didn’t say he was limited. – Heath R.

I have mixed news. When I asked him about it before practice, he said, “I’m good. Shoulder’s all good.” But then he was back in a blue, no-contact jersey during the practice, an indication that while the shoulder might be better, it’s not “all good.” He was a limited participant after being a full participant on Wednesday.

What percentage of snaps do you expect split between Christian McCaffrey, Mason and Isaac Guerendo? – Mike T.

This is a guess:

This week: McCaffrey 55 percent, Mason 40 percent, Guerendo 5 percent.

Jordan Mason’s 667 rushing yards were third-most among all backs through the first seven weeks. (Photo: Ezra Shaw / Getty Images)

In four weeks (assuming all three are healthy): McCaffrey 88 percent, Mason 12 percent, Guerendo 0 percent.

With Elijah Mitchell returning and the upcoming draft’s strength at RB, will the 49ers want to pay Mason like they did Jauan Jennings (2nd round tender, then a two-year extension) next year? – Greg C.

It might hinge on McCaffrey’s health. If his Achilles issues are in the rearview mirror, I can’t see them paying a lot to hold onto Mason. Mitchell will be an unrestricted free agent, but if the 49ers want him back I doubt he’ll be hard to re-sign due to his vast injury history. A bigger factor is Guerendo. He seems to be developing into exactly the type of runner – and just as important, the type of receiver out of the backfield – they want at the position.

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The New Orleans Saints interim coach said that the big change he’s making is they are going to warm up before practice. I was shocked that a team wouldn’t be warming up beforehand. Given the 49ers ongoing injury issues, can you confirm whether or not they warm up before practice? – Clayton J.

Yes, the pre-stretch “activation” period the Saints coach was referring to is mandatory for the 49ers. They step over hurdles, do light running and jumping and otherwise get their bodies warm for the stretch.

Will cornerback Darrell Luter Jr. see playing time in Charvarius Ward’s absence? – Jon S.

Yes, assuming Ward – mourning the loss of his daughter – doesn’t play on Sunday, I think Luter will be in uniform. Does he play on defense? That’s a different question.

He was active for just the second time this season during the Week 8 game against the Dallas Cowboys while fellow cornerback Rock Ya-Sin was inactive for the first time this season. My sense, however, is that maneuver was all about trying to strengthen special teams.

Without Ward, the top three cornerbacks Sunday would be Deommodore Lenoir, Renardo Green and Isaac Yiadom, in that order. I think both Ya-Sin and Luter will be in uniform and mainly playing special teams. If the 49ers need a fourth corner to come in and play a significant number of snaps, it would probably be Ya-Sin, the far more experienced player. If it’s garbage-time snaps, they might go with Luter to give him some seasoning.

If the 49ers hadn’t traded for Jimmy Garoppolo and signed Kirk Cousins instead in the following offseason, do you think the 49ers would have won at least one Super Bowl? – Steve G.

Let’s go year by year:

2018: Jerick McKinnon tore his ACL before the season and Garoppolo tore his ACL in Week 3. And the 49ers hadn’t yet acquired Nick Bosa, Deebo Samuel, Nick Bosa, Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings. So it’s hard to see them winning the big game even with an in-his-prime Joe Montana. Answer: no

2019: Patrick Mahomes still would have been the opposing quarterback, right? Answer: no.

2020: The team lost Bosa and others in a Week 2 body bag game, then were banished to Arizona in the last part of the season due to COVID-19 restrictions at home. Answer: no

2021: This one is interesting because the 49ers got hot in the second half of the season and because it was a non-Mahomes Super Bowl (The Cincinnati Bengals represented the AFC). Still, the decisive play in that year’s NFC Championship was Jaquiski Tartt dropping an easy interception. Maybe a Cousins-led team would have made that gaffe less prominent? Dunno. Answer: Maybe

2022: Every 49ers quarterback got hurt that season. Would Cousins have been the exception? Answer: A weak maybe

2023: See: 2019

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If Talanoa Hufanga returns, who do you think he replaces between Ji’Ayir Brown and Malik Mustapha? Or do they keep rolling with the Brown/Mustapha duo and use Hufanga as a backup? – Dimitri M.

It’s still not clear whether Hufanga’s wrist injury will allow him to come back this season. If he did play – perhaps with a cast – I’d think the 49ers would go with the most experienced duo, Hufanga and Brown. Considering the 49ers just added a pair of 30-something safeties to the overall roster, Amos and Gipson, it seems like having experience at that position is paramount for San Francisco.

Do you feel anyone on the current coaching staff may be poached by another team after the season? – Rich D.

These are the 49ers assistants I might want to talk to if I was conducting a coaching/coordinator search:

• Daniel Bullocks. The 49ers considered Bullocks, their defensive backs coach, for their vacant defensive coordinator post in the offseason.

• Brian Griese. He’s the 49ers’ quarterbacks coach and has been an excellent fit with Brock Purdy. Does he want to call plays? If the answer’s yes, a team might want to see if he’s interested in becoming an offensive coordinator.

• Brian Fleury. He’s the 49ers tight ends coach but does a lot more than coach tight ends. He’s also integral in the team’s run plays. That background – having expertise in the run game in Shanahan’s system – has served Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel well. A smart NFL owner/GM might see Fleury as a great choice for offensive coordinator.

• Klay Kubiak. The 49ers’ offensive pass game specialist knows the Shanahan as well as anyone. His dad, Gary, has been running it since the mid 1990s. His brother, Klint, is the Saints offensive coordinator. (As bad as the Saints have been this season, the offense ranks in the middle of the pack).

• Mick Lombardi. He served two years as the Las Vegas Raiders’ offensive coordinator and will have spent a season under Shanahan.

• Brandon Staley. He has head coaching experience and the 49ers also considered him for their defensive coordinator vacancy earlier this year.

Can you ask Brock Purdy if he’s sad that Outer Banks will be over after Season 5? – Bill H.

He hadn’t heard the announcement that OB announced its fifth and final season, so there was a mix of excitement that there will be a fifth and disappointment that there won’t be a sixth.

Purdy: “I love Outer Banks. I mean, during COVID that was the show. I’ll definitely watch until the end. I have good memories with the family, watching it during COVID all together. At night, we’d all jump on the couch. We were together the whole time. It’s a good memory. When we think about Outer Banks and the theme song and everything, we just think about being together and watching it every night.”