4 Players (and 1 Rookie) Who Must Step Up for 49ers to Stay Perfect

The Jaguars are no pushovers.

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan. | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

The San Francisco 49ers are on the verge of going 4-0 with a win this weekend at home against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Once again, it appears the 49ers will be a bit shorthanded on the injury front, and Jacksonville is going to bring a few challenges of its own. It will force the following players to perform their best.

Colton McKivitz

Travon Walker has not been the surefire number one pick that is a star of the NFL, but he has not been a bust by any sense of the word, either. Walker has 10 sacks in each of the past two seasons, and with two sacks in three games, he is on pace to make it three straight seasons with double-digit sacks. 

Walker usually will align against the right tackle, but even when he does not, the Jaguars actually have a better pass rusher across from him, Josh Hines-Allen. This duo has 31 combined pressures this season, per Pro Football Focus. That is tied with Houston’s duo for second, and one behind the Denver Broncos duo of Nick Bonitto and Jonathan Cooper. 

We know what Trent Williams can do in these scenarios; now, the question is whether the 49ers can trust Colton McKivitz, because with two studs on the edge, he will have nowhere to hide. 

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Sam Okuayinonu 

The player likely to see the biggest jump in playing time due to the Nick Bosa injury is Okuayinonu. In the first two weeks, the former UDFA went from 28.8% and 39.4% playing time rates up to 63.6% without Bosa. 

That is because Yetur Gross-Matos is still being eased into playing time with his knee injury, and they want to try to limit Bryce Huff to just playing pass rush downs. 

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Upton Stout

Travis Hunter has not been the explosive threat that many thought when the Jaguars drafted him second overall in the 2025 NFL draft. However, a lot of it appears to be small details as Hunter starts to work on both sides of the football. At some point, when things start to come together, he could still be dangerous. 

Hunter runs the majority of his routes from the slot. Stout has been good this season, but has typically been better coming towards the ball than he has in coverage. San Francisco needs to keep the trend of containing Hunter going, and Stout will be key. 

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Demarcus Robinson 

Robinson is back from his suspension, and it could not come at a better time. Jauan Jennings is still banged up, and Ricky Pearsall was added to the injury report. Pearsall is likely to play, but if Jennings misses the game, the presence of Robinson will be huge. If Jennings plays, the presence of Robinson will give them a legitimate three-wide set for the first time all season. 

Robinson will not fix all of the woes, but his professionalism as a wide receiver will likely go a long way.