It’s cutdown day. That means that before the 1 p.m. PT deadline, the cuts will tend to roll in intermittently.
The 49ers have had a habit in the past of not releasing their official roster cuts publicly until after the deadline, so bare in mind there may be a little more waiting to do.
But some of the early cuts have have already happened, with the team releasing last year’s third-down back JaMycal Hasty. They had six running backs on the roster, with two of them third-round picks of the last two years in Trey Sermon and Ty Davis-Price, and the others the likely one-two of Elijah Mitchell and Jeff Wilson Jr.
Then there’s Willie Snead IV, who dropped one of the worst passes in recent memory to close out an ignominious third preseason game.
Marcus Johnson, who did some work on special teams, also got cut.
The last receiver cut we know about thus far is Tay Martin. If it remains this way, then Malik Turner would be the team’s sixth wide receiver. There’s been some question as to whether the team would keep five or six wide receivers this season.
That wide receiver question might get a little easier with a somewhat surprising move. The 49ers cut Jason Poe, the undrafted Mercer standout who pushed for some first team reps at the end of camp. He will be a major priority to return to the practice squad.
It’s not a total shock, given the team had a clear cut hierarchy of eight offensive linemen, but Poe’s performance in camp made many wonder whether they’d retain a ninth lineman. Apparently not.
Also cut is veteran tackle Jordan Mills, who performed well in pass protection, but struggled in the run game.
Sixth-round pick Tariq Castro-Fields had a quiet camp and will likely be a practice squad addition.
Also missing out on the roster, as expected, are linebackers Segun Olubi and Marcelino McCrary-Ball.
Also waived is Qwuantrezz Knight, who was in the backup rotation at nickel.
Some of the more substantial cuts have started to roll in, with both Dontae Johnson and Malik Turner getting cut. Johnson is positionally flexible, but had been repping at safety, and is likely to return after a few IR moves.
Turner had impressed on special teams and was a candidate for the sixth wide receiver spot. Him and Johnson missing out means the team is likely to add additional depth at a spot like running back (Jordan Mason) or tight end (Tyler Kroft, Troy Fumagalli the two options there).
Jeremy Fowler also reported in the thread above that Justin Skule, who had a terrible camp, was cut.