The nickel cornerback spot was one of the few starting lineup questions for the San Francisco 49ers heading into training camp.
Charvarius Ward and Deommodore Lenoir were both locked in as starters, but the nickel CB job was up for grabs with a handful of contenders. As camp and the preseason churned on, veteran Isaac Yiadom and rookie second-round pick Renardo Green emerged as the top options to earn starting jobs.
Defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen told reporters after Friday’s practice the club has an answer at that spot. Rather than playing coy, Sorensen divulged the 49ers would lean toward the veteran as the third CB.
“Well how we’ve been going has been how it started out, with Ike (Yiadom) and DMo (Lenoir) and Mooney (Ward),” Sorensen said. “And then we’ve been rotating guys through and getting a lot of reps with them as well. But that’s how it’s going right now. And Renardo (Green) rotating in.”
Lenoir and Ward figure to be the two outside corners in the 49ers’ base defense. In the more commonly-used nickel packages, Yiadom will take over an outside spot while Lenoir kicks inside to the slot.
Green worked primarily in the slot during his first training camp. If he rotates in it would likely be in the slot with Lenoir staying outside.
This is in line with how the 49ers approached the third CB job last year. They didn’t have a rookie, but they had veterans Ambry Thomas and Isaiah Oliver.
Thomas would play outside in nickel with Lenoir in the slot. If Oliver was in, he’d play in the slot with Lenoir outside.
Nickel CB was a pretty significant problem for the 49ers last season. Ward and Lenoir were both very good, but their third CB spot was up-and-down all year.
This season they have some options again, but they’ll lean on Yiadom who is coming off his best season as a pro. If he picks up where he left off with the Saints last season and Lenoir continues his ascension toward being a Pro Bowl caliber slot CB, the 49ers will have solved a significant issue in their secondary.