49ers draft steal headlines 3 potential surprise cuts if they don’t play well against Raiders

The San Francisco 49ers finish preseason on Friday when they return to the scene of their Super Bowl 58 defeat to face the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium.

For those on the roster bubble, the game will serve as the final chance to impress and state their case for a spot on the 53 .

But there are three players who loom as potential surprise omissions if they do not put together a solid display in Las Vegas.

Elijah Mitchell

I've previously written about Mitchell as a surprise cut candidate , and training camp has only solidified my opinion that he could be set to move on.

The 49ers' leading rusher from 2021 has missed much of camp with a hamstring issue, continuing a theme of injuries that have dogged his career with the team.

In that time, Jordan Mason has seemingly solidified his position as the second-string running back behind Christian McCaffrey and undrafted free agent Cody Schrader has impressed.

Mitchell returned to practice this week, however, with rookie fourth-round pick Isaac Guerendo also recovering from a hamstring problem and the 49ers unlikely to carry more than four running backs, it could be case of Mitchell competing with both Guerendo and Schrader for the final two spots on the depth chart.

The 49ers would save over $1 million in cap space by moving on from Mitchell. If he doesn't outshine the two rookies he appears to be competing with, they may be motivated to make that move.

Brayden Willis

The seventh-round pick from last year has enjoyed a strong training camp, but his roster spot remains far from secure.

Evidence of that point came in the fourth quarter of the last preseason game, in the fact that Willis was still featuring in that contest with the Saints at that late juncture in the contest.

Eric Saubert appears to be a lock for the second tight end job behind All-Pro George Kittle, but Willis has surprising competition for a place on the depth chart from Jake Tonges, who was on the practice squad last year.

Tonges was also playing deep into the fourth quarter against the Saints, but he leads all 49ers tight ends this preseason with six catches for 49 yards and has shown versatility to suggest he could sneak his way onto the 53.

"We got him on our practice squad last year, so we got to see a lot of him, just on scout team and stuff," Kyle Shanahan said recently of Tonges. "And he’s always done a real good job here and he’s taken advantage of his opportunities. He’s mixing around at a couple positions and he’s going to make this decision tough for us."

Willis has for a long time seemed to be the favorite for the third tight end role but, with Tonges emerging and Cameron Latu still in the mix as a player the 49ers spent a third-rounder on last year, there's no guarantee Willis makes it even if the Niners carry four tight ends. A bad performance in Las Vegas might convince the 49ers to give Tonges a shot ahead of Willis.

Jaylon Moore

On the surface, Moore, who served as the 49ers' swing tackle last season and has received a lot of vocal support from the coaching staff during a strong training camp, looks a lock for the roster.

But he struggled markedly in the game with New Orleans, giving up three pressures as Brock Purdy came up significant duress playing behind a makeshift offensive line.

The 49ers have two other veteran options to man the backup tackle spots in Chris Hubbard and Brandon Parker, along with rookies in Dominick Puni and Jarrett Kingston who have guard-tackle versatility. Moore is still a favorite to make the team but he is not a sure thing. Should he struggle again, he could find himself in jeopardy.

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