The San Francisco 49ers made several roster moves on Monday ahead of their 10th training camp practice, with one decision sparking significant buzz among reporters and fans alike. The team released veteran kicker Greg Joseph, who was competing with Jake Moody for the kicking job.
Joseph's departure appears to signal that Moody has won the kicker competition—much earlier than many expected. While this move can be seen as a decisive vote of confidence in Moody, Shanahan admitted the team would have preferred to keep the battle going longer. Unfortunately, injuries have forced their hand.
"More just the roster numbers," head coach Kyle Shanahan explained. "I would have loved to keep him longer, allow them to play that out longer, but just we had 13 guys out of practice today. We've got five guys on PUP (the physically unable to perform list). It's just too many people [out] to have that luxury.
"It's awesome to have two kickers, allow them to battle, but they're not guys who really take reps. We need more people to take reps for us."
There is a possibility that some of the players released on Monday could return as more sidelined players return to practice. Shanahan was asked if Joseph's release means the competition is officially over.
"I mean, he's not here, but whether you have one kicker in the building or two, which you rarely have two, kickers always know they're competing with whoever's out there," Shanahan responded. "I don't see it much different."
The head coach also addressed the decision to release quarterback Tanner Mordecai in favor of keeping newcomer Carter Bradley alongside Brock Purdy and Mac Jones.
"Really, we brought him in (for a workout), not thinking we'd make a move that day, but he did so well in our workout that we went back and watched his 38 passes that he had in the preseason last year, and we wanted to get him in here so he could compete with Tanner," Shanahan said.
"Then, after some of the things that happened in practice—last practice—losing a number of D-linemen, we just couldn't have the luxury to have the two of them, especially with [rookie QB Kurtis] Rourke being on PUP too, because he's got a count.
"Maybe there's a chance we can get Tanner back. We'll see how this roster goes. But we like the chance to work with Bradley right now."