49ers Notebook: Jacob Cowing, Isaac Guerendo impress; Brock Purdy’s risky tackling move; No decision on backup QB yet; Returning to the scene of the crime; That crazy ending

The final game of the 2024 San Francisco 49ers preseason turned out to be a fairly entertaining one, while also serving as a proving ground that a handful of players used to make a statement about where they belong once the initial 53-man roster is released.

A number of tough decisions remain for 49ers coaches as they head towards the August 27 deadline to cut rosters to 53 players (4 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT). A few of those decisions may have become tougher during Friday night's 24-24 tie against the Las Vegas Raiders, while other players showed enough to make some of those decisions easier.

We'll have a look at which of those players made a statement on Friday in this version of 49ers Notebook, while also getting into some comments from Kyle Shanahan and Brock Purdy about what the 49ers quarterback showed during his second preseason start. Plus we'll have a look back on the nearly insane finish to the game and much more as we round up the most noteworthy quotes to come from postgame interviews. Let's get into it...

Fourth-round picks make their presence felt

It was easy to come away from Friday night's game with the impression that the 49ers may have gotten potential impact players with all three of their fourth-round selections from their 2024 draft class, due in large part to the contributions of running back Isaac Guerendo and wide receiver Jacob Cowing.

The team's third fourth-round pick, safety Malik Mustapha, has been opening eyes since arriving in the spring and got the start at safety Friday night over veteran George Odum. But hamstring injuries to Cowing and Guerendo limited them in recent weeks, and it wasn't until the past week that they had the opportunity to show what they can do in a game situation.

Cowing burst on the scene during the 49ers' 16-10 win over the New Orleans Saints on August 18 with four catches for 51 yards, one carry for 19 yards, and two punt returns for 19 yards. He made an impact again on Friday with three catches for 39 yards and a touchdown and three punt returns for 19 yards.

Guerendo made his preseason debut on Friday and showed the speed and potential that made the 49ers feel he was worthy of a fourth-round pick. Guerendo had 11 carries for 32 yards while breaking free on an electric 93-yard kickoff return that almost resulted in a touchdown.

Where Cowing and Guerendo wind up fitting in during the regular season remains to be seen. But if there was any doubt about whether or not they would have a spot on the 53-man roster, it's most likely been erased over the past week. At the very least, both players proved they could potentially be the answers the 49ers have been looking for in the return game since the offseason departure of return specialist Ray-Ray McCloud in free agency.

Given the depth the 49ers have at running back with Christian McCaffrey, Jordan Mason, and Elijah Mitchell, it's quite possible that kick returns will be where Guerendo will have the most opportunity to make an early impact this season. He admitted to being a bit gassed at the end of his 93-yard return Friday night ("It's the first time [I was] able to open up in a little while so it was exciting," Guerendo said), but he thinks he can be a solution for the 49ers on kickoffs, especially after getting a taste of the new kickoff rules in the NFL.

"It felt really good," Guerendo told reporters Friday (via David Lombardi of The Athletic)."That's my first time being a part of that new dynamic with the new kickoff return rule, but it's exciting. A lot of room for big plays."

Friday night's game was an important opportunity for Guerendo after fighting through his injury, and it's safe to say he cashed in on it in the way he needed.

"Obviously it's frustrating but it's nothing I haven't been through before," Guerendo said. "So I just told myself to control what I can control, take it one day at a time, and when an opportunity comes, try to take advantage of it."

Cowing probably erased any doubt about his roster status with his performance against the Saints. But what he's shown over the past two games as well as at practice has left his veteran teammates excited about what he can bring.

"This game, I feel like he got his groove," cornerback Deommodore Lenoir said. "The last month in training camp with him being a rookie, he's still trying to find his identity. So I feel like this game, I've just been seeing the confidence build up, lead up. Then he was celebrating, so I knew he was kind of feeling himself."

Quarterback Joshua Dobbs added, "(Cowing's) an absolute stud... He's done a tremendous job stepping in there making plays and has been fun to watch."

Cowing said Friday he's been focused on making the most of what has come his way in recent days. Chances are it will lead to bigger things as the season progresses.

"Just continue to play my game, being confident in my abilities each and every game, each and every practice I was going into," Cowing said. "Just being present in the moment as well too, not trying to think too far ahead and just spending those moments with the guys in preseason and cherishing those moments and all the hard work that we put into this thing."

The verdict is still out at quarterback

While Cowing and Guerendo may have shown they're the answer at the return spots, there's still no clear indication how things will shake out at the quarterback position behind Purdy. The 49ers entered the preseason with Dobbs and Brandon Allen set to battle for the No. 2 spot, and it would seem based on game results that Dobbs currently stands as the favorite to get the nod over Allen. But Shanahan wasn't ready to reveal anything on Friday.

"I think it's been pretty similar in all these games and they've both done some real good things," Shanahan said. "We've got two guys who we believe can play. That will be a tough decision, but I'm glad it's a decision we've got to make."

Dobbs finished 8-of-10 Friday night with one touchdown, just days after a strong showing in the win over the Saints, while Allen went 5-of-7 for 60 yards. Perhaps both Dobbs and Allen will make the roster, or perhaps the 49ers will elect to keep only one of them. Or maybe the 49ers might even decide they'd rather have one of the two and keep undrafted rookie Tanner Mordecai as their third quarterback. That's one of many questions they'll have to answer before Tuesday.

Luter makes one last pitch

The cornerback position is another spot where the 49ers will have a tough choice to make as they decide who to keep between Darrell Luter, Samuel Womack, and Rock Ya-Sin.

With Lenoir, Charvarius Ward, rookie Renardo Green, and veteran Isaac Yiadom expected to take the first four spots, the 49ers will have to figure out how many of the others they want to keep. Ya-Sin started for the 49ers Friday night and has made his case in recent weeks, while Luter and Womack played extended minutes throughout the game. Luter came down with the biggest play of that group when he intercepted a fourth down pass in the end zone to halt a Raiders scoring opportunity.

The interception was a big moment for Luter, who was expected to make an impact as a rookie last year but spent the first part of the season on the sidelines instead due to knee issues. He's been making progress throughout the past month and has left an impression on Shanahan along the way.

"It's been great," Shanahan said. "I mean, just for, you know, it's unfortunate with what happened to him (last) year. For him to get through the whole camp and to be able to stay healthy has allowed him to get better. We got a lot of belief in his ability and everything, and guys need time and guys need reps, and he's gotten those reps finally this year where he didn't get them last year. I think it's helped him a lot. He gets better each week and made some big plays in that game. That pick was huge. And no one's a finished product, but I love the direction he's going."

A positive (and maybe scary) showing for Brock Purdy

Five days after an uneventful start against the Saints saw him finish 2-of-6 for 11 yards with an offense full of backup players, Purdy was given another start on Friday night and came away with a more positive showing, finishing 9-of-12 for 96 yards and an interception.

Purdy had two of his biggest weapons in the lineup Friday night in wide receiver Deebo Samuel and tight end George Kittle, and he made big plays to both of them while guiding the 49ers to an early 10-0 lead. He left the game after an interception by Raiders safety Chris Smith, during which he found himself diving towards Smith to make a tackle.

The starting quarterback throwing his body in the way of a safety during a preseason game probably wasn't a sight 49ers fans wanted to see, but Purdy got caught up in the heat of the moment and found himself trying to make a play.

"Obviously you don't want to turn the ball over, but I don't want them returning it," Purdy said. "So I feel like I had leverage to, you know, get him out of bounds and that's just what I tried to do. Obviously I don't want to be tackling in the preseason, but it happened so quick and I was just trying to get him out of bounds."

The 49ers had two key players leave Friday's game with injuries in defensive ends Leonard Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos (both knee injuries), and fortunately Purdy didn't follow suit. Overall, Shanahan was happy with what he saw from Purdy, especially considering he got through the game healthy.

"I thought he did a good job," Shanahan said. "You know, the pick, I thought that (Smith) made a good play, just getting his hands in there and knocking the ball up in there, so that was unfortunate, but no, that's what we wanted. We just wanted to give him some playing time, get him out healthy, and that was kind of the goal for everyone today. It's not really a fun thing going into these games when you want guys to play because I truly believe it helps them, but you want to make sure they stay healthy, too."

(Not-so-good) memories of Allegiant Stadium

Friday night marked the first time the 49ers returned to Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas since their overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII, and while the focus was getting the final preseason game in the books, there was still a somewhat unpleasant familiarity to their surroundings.

"I mean, you know, just driving into the stadium and then, yeah, seeing the locker room and our lockers are for this game at least they're in different spots," Purdy said. "And then, you know, just being on the sideline, it seems like yesterday we were just playing that game, so obviously it sucks thinking about it and how we just weren't able to finish. But it's 2024 and we're excited for the season, so we're going to have another opportunity at it."

Shanahan told reporters he had a quick flashback to Super Bowl LVIII but didn't spend more than a few moments dwelling on the past.

"I actually really like the stadium. It's cool atmosphere. It's one of the newer stadiums that feels truly like a football stadium, kind of when you're inside there," Shanahan said. "So I like having games here, but, yeah, it wasn't the best feeling when you go into the locker room, remembering the last time you were in there, but you get over it pretty fast."

Craziest play of the preseason?

It didn't count in the end, but the final play of Friday's game between the 49ers and Raiders might have been the most entertaining moment from any NFL preseason game in 2024.

With the game tied at 24, Mordecai let loose one final Hail Mary that was deflected into the hands of wide receiver Trent Taylor. From there, a round of chaos ensued that included multiple laterals, fumbles, and offensive lineman Sebastian Gutierrez handling the ball twice.

"I wish we could have gotten in the end zone," Lenoir said. "It would have made the play cooler and SportsCenter Top 10. It would have been the craziest play of the year already."

The 49ers were flagged for an illegal forward pass on the play, so it wouldn't have made a difference if someone had scored. But it was exciting to watch live and is just as fun to watch repeatedly on replay.

"It was pretty cool. I mean, that was one of the more fun plays that I've seen," Shanahan said. "It was frustrating to end there in the tie. You don't ever want to end in a tie, but I'm definitely glad that we don't have to go to overtime in the preseason, so I'd much rather have that. But it was real cool. Gutierrez took about a half an hour to get back in, so we were messing with him that he was doing interviews after and stuff because his dream finally came true, but he was still exhausted from it also, so guys had fun with him in there. It was a real fun play, but all for nothing."

For Dobbs, the play served as a reminder that the 49ers are a group that never stops trying to win regardless of the circumstances.

"It was an unreal ending and I think it's really cool to see how much the guys care, right?" Dobbs said. "It's preseason and sometimes the value might not be in the final result of the game. But to see the guys fighting until the final whistle, it shows how much that they care, shows the pride of this team, and really shows the culture that's been built here over the past several years."

Related News

• 49ers' backup QB job a close race between Josh Dobbs and Brandon Allen Pro Football Talk • Aug 24
• Isaac Guerendo Most Likely Will be the 49ers' Primary Kick Returner SI.com • Aug 24
• 49ers rookie Cowing continues impressive NFL preseason vs. Raiders NBCS Bay Area • Aug 24