The 49ers right guard had been impressive after earning an opportunity with the top offense.
The San Francisco 49ers seem to have their right guard position set in stone, as head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch shared that third-round rookie Dominick Puni has earned the right to be a starter entering the season on KNBR this week.
Puni, a four-year college starter who spent a majority of time at tackle, worked in at right guard for the 49ers this offseason and grasped a major opportunity when starter Spencer Burford went down with a broken hand, causing him to miss nearly the entirety of training camp.
That, paired with a nagging knee injury to Jon Feliciano, paved the way to first-team reps for the rookie, and Puni never let go of that spot, impressing throughout the offseason all the way into the preseason.
His early returns have caught the eye of star tight end George Kittle, who praised the right guard on 95.7 The Game earlier today.
“Puni has done everything you could have wanted him to do and more as a rookie,” Kittle said. Anyone that comes in as a rookie, it’s hard to succeed right away, especially when you’re just thrusted into the starting role because a couple of guys got hurt in front of you.”
“The great thing about getting your name called, your number is called and there is an opportunity, and what are you going to do? All he’s done is taken advantage of it. He’s played really well against the Titans and then he comes out and plays really well against the Saints. Then you see him at practice and he’s very consistent all the time. He goes the right direction every single time, and he understands the calls.”
The tight end joked about Puni’s nagging habit of calling out the look in front of him, only further pointing out how impressive the initial outlook has been.
I think probably the only bad thing about Puni right now is that he likes to call out the Deuce (combination between the guard and tackle), so then the Dline knows exactly what he’s doing every single time, but he’ll figure out that you don’t need to communicate that. If that’s the worst thing you got going on for you, then you’re doing a hell of a job.”
It’s an unfortunate situation for Burford, who seemed primed for a starting spot prior to his injury, but a great example of a player taking over a presented opportunity.
With Puni starting at right guard, the 49ers seemingly have their offensive line set, although Trent Williams is still holding out, while Aaron Banks is recovering from a finger injury.