SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- A little more than a year ago, the San Francisco 49ers found themselves in need of help at wide receiver, a need that led them to a late-preseason trade with the Detroit Lions.
In that deal, the Niners landed receiver Jeremy Kerley, who went on to become the team's most productive wideout in 2016. While Kerley didn't blow anyone away with his final numbers, the 49ers would be more than happy if their latest trade with the Lions brought a similarly solid return this close to the start of the regular season.
Although the regime has changed from last year, Niners general manager John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan finalized a deal with the Lions on Thursday that brought guard Laken Tomlinson to the Bay Area in exchange for a fifth-round pick in 2019. Tomlinson actually arrived while the Niners were playing their final preseason game against the San Diego Chargers, but passed his physical Friday morning, making the deal official.
Upon arrival, Tomlinson will find himself with a golden opportunity to contribute right away, quite possibly as a starter. That's because left guard Joshua Garnett is dealing with a knee injury that will land him either on season-ending injured reserve or injured reserve with the possibility to be designated for return. Garnett has been out since early August, leaving the left guard job to Zane Beadles, who generally is considered a better option as a backup capable of playing anywhere on the line.
“We brought [Tomlinson] in to help us out at guard," Shanahan said. "We know we’re going to have a decision here to make with Josh, which we’re going to do here over the weekend. We know it’s going to be one of those type of IRs. That’s something we’ve got to sit down with Josh and talk more about, which I’d like to do more [Friday], and the doctors. We know we wanted to get a guard in here that has played. We saw him coming out of college. He’s a guy who definitely has a lot of talent. Hasn’t reached it all yet in this league. But, want to give him a new start and we think he can come in here and help us.”
Tomlinson entered the league as the No. 28 overall pick in 2015 out of Duke. His reputation then was as a smart player with a knack for moving defenders off the ball with his power. His fit in the Niners' outside-zone run scheme remains to be seen, however, as guards often are asked to lean on their athleticism and get to the second level more than relying on power to push opponents out of the way.
Additionally, it seems Tomlinson initially will be asked to step in for Beadles on the left side, though he has spent most of his career in college and the NFL on the right. Shanahan said he hopes Tomlinson can play either side.
“In this league, you’ve really got to be both guards," Shanahan said. "We’re going to work him at both of the spots, but wherever he can find a starting position, that’s where he’s going to try to go. But what he’s played is both those guard spots and when you’re a backup, you’ve got to be able to play both of them.”
Regardless of where he lines up, Tomlinson won't have much time to get up to speed if he's going to start the Niners' opener against the Carolina Panthers. The team will get back to work next week, giving Tomlinson only about a week to learn the offense and a few days of practice to implement what he's learned.
“We’ll start getting him with our O-line coach and our O-line assistant and they’ll start working," Shanahan said. "They’ll start trying to teach him our scheme. It’ll take until Saturday to get him out on the field with us and we’ll do a little bit Monday. Then we’ll jump into our normal Wednesday and have a normal week after that. It’s a lot to put on a guy to expect him to be ready Week 1. But we’re going to go at it as hard as we can. We’ll see where he’s at each week.”