Ji’Ayir Brown May Have Received Unfortunate News From the 49ers

The starting safety positions were wide open for the San Francisco 49ers throughout training camp.

Now that Week 1 against the Seattle Seahawks is quickly approaching, the 49ers will have made their decisions. Or rather, Robert Saleh will have made them since he has autonomy over the personnel.

One of the starting spots has to have gone to Jason Pinnock. He’s a player familiar with Saleh and whom Saleh trusts. That means the final spot goes to either Ji’Ayir Brown or rookie Marques Sigle.

Unfortunately for Brown, he may have already received the news that he isn’t starting. The tip-off derives from the comments Kyle Shanahan made about him at his press conference on Wednesday.

Oct 10, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; San Francisco 49ers safety Ji’Ayir Brown (27) celebrates after a defensive play against the Seattle Seahawks during the second half at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images / Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

“I love Ji’Ayir. He got his opportunity when [Talanoa Hufanga] Huff got hurt, and he came in I want to say it was seven games his rookie year after Huff got hurt, and I thought had a hell of a year,” said Shanahan.

“I thought he battled a lot of stuff last year with injuries and he battled a lot of stuff in this offseason too and then had a setback in training camp where he missed some time. But the more Tig is out there, the better he gets, the more consistent he gets. But it’s just been up and down with injuries.”

Initially, Shanahan’s comments seem like good news for Brown. But it’s easy to get lost when he says he “loves” Brown. Of course, he’s going to say that. He’s the one who drafted Brown.

The real segment of his comments to hone in on is the final sentence. Brown has been on a roller coaster ride with his injuries, and it’s caused him to be put behind the eight ball.

Sep 9, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers safety Ji’Ayir Brown (27) waits for the New York Jets to snap the ball in the fourth quarter at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images / David Gonzales-Imagn Images

That’s why he played so much in the preseason finale against the Los Angeles Chargers. He had a lot of ground to make up, and Saleh wanted to see how he fit in his defense.

Shanahan probably had a hand in it too. Given how he’s spoken about Brown, Shanahan could’ve told Saleh to keep trying him until Saleh absolutely believes he doesn’t want him to start.

Either one of two things is going to be revealed on Sunday. Sigle will either be the starter, which will relegate Brown as a backup and as a special teams player.

Or, Brown will be the starter and will be on a short leash. If he’s still a liability on defense like he was last year, Saleh will not hesitate to pull the plug on him after a few games.

But I think Brown has already been told the unfortunate news that he won’t be starting.