49ers - Vikings, What to Watch for

By Kalen Patrick

FOOTBALL IS BACK! The 49ers open up the preseason against the Minnesota Vikings on Friday at 5PM  Pacific Time. I am never one to care about the scores in preseason games, I much prefer to focus on how certain individual players perform. I am going to compile a list of players that I will be focusing on and I will explain why.

49ERS QB - COLIN KAEPERNICK

1. Alex Boone RG - Boone is currently leading the competition for the starting RG spot, this will be his first chance to prove this when he takes on an opponents D-Line. The Vikings have a pair of very good linemen in Kevin Williams and Jared Allen. If Boone can do a good job on Friday it will help his chances of earning that starting spot. Guards Leonard Davis and rookie Joe Looney will be eager to prove themselves, Boone cannot take this competition lightly.

2. Colin Kaepernick QB - It has already been laid out that Alex Smith is the unquestioned starter, however, Smith does have a history of shoulder injuries and at any time Kaepernick could be asked to come in and play. In the NFL you need to have a good backup QB so that you're season isn't completely over if your starter goes down (Colts 2011 are an example of what not to do). I am very interested to see the progression of Kaepernick having a year in the offense, last preseason he was a disaster, but with a strike shortened offseason and Kaepernick being a very raw player that was to be expected.

3. Aldon Smith OLB/DE - We all know what Aldon Smith is capable of doing when rushing the passer, he is a beast and is already at the cusp of being an elite pass rusher. What makes me want to focus on Aldon is that I expect Vic Fangio to try and get Aldon to focus on his coverage skills and run stopping skills to make him a better all-round player. This way Aldon with his immense talent can see the field a lot more on 1st and 2nd down.

49ERS HC - JIM HARBAUGH HAS FAITH IN ROOKIE WR AJ JENKINS

4. A.J. Jenkins WR - The rookie WR was receiving not only footballs but a fair amount of criticism when he first started taking the field at mini-camps and OTA's. Said to have been out of shape, not catching on as quickly as anticipated, Jenkins is out to prove all his doubters wrong. Unlike last year, the 49ers have quality depth at WR with Crabtree, Manningham and Moss. Jenkins is in a fierce battle with Kyle Williams and Ted Ginn Jr at WR. Lets not forget that Jenkins is a 1st round WR, he has a lot to prove to show he was worthy of the 30th overall pick. Harbaugh has already put it out there that Jenkins is a quality player who can contribute now, lets see if AJ can back that up on the field.