SANTA CLARA — Dante Pettis has the potential to be the 49ers’ No. 1 wide receiver. For now, he may be No. 1 in coach Kyle Shanahan’s doghouse.
Shanahan, as far back as February, has publicly implored Pettis to come flourish in his second season, to attack the ball, to play stronger and to show up consistently.
The results have been mixed. The season is two weeks away. And Shanahan continues to lobby for more from Pettis.
Why did he keep Pettis in to catch a bubble-screen pass in the closing minutes of Saturday’s 27-17 exhibition win at Kansas City? “I believe he needed to be. He’s still trying to earn a role on this team and show what he’s capable of doing, consistently,” Shanahan answered.
Pettis, no doubt, will be on the 49ers’ 53-man roster come Saturday’s 1 p.m. deadline. He may even be in the starting lineup Sept. 8 at Tampa Bay.
The 49ers simply are urging him to break out from a peloton of about seven receivers capable of making the roster.
As Shanahan spoke Sunday about his offense’s capabilities, he rattled off a list of players he needs healthy. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo wasn’t among them; it seems a foregone conclusion his comeback is all set. But Shanahan did bring Pettis’ name into play.
“When you get guys back like (George) Kittle, if we could get Jet (McKinnon) back and we’ll see how that goes this week, when we get everyone healthy, when we get (Jalen) Hurd out there healthy, when we get Pettis playing up to his potential, we’ve got a number guys on our team who can take us completely to another level,” Shanahan said.
“A lot of that has to do with guys getting healthy and also guys playing to their potential. What I’m excited is I can say that about a lot of guys on our team. Now we have to see if we’ll do it or not.”
Pettis made his first three catches of the exhibition season Saturday night. One that got away was a poorly thrown pass that Shanahan thought Pettis still could have tried harder for, a Garoppolo 20-yard toss into triple coverage at the goal line.
“You shouldn’t throw into triple coverage in that situation,” Shanahan said. “We were fortunate enough not to get it picked. I’d like Dante to go up and make more of an attempt to catch it. But that’s a ball that should never leave (Garoppolo’s) hand.”
When Pettis reported to training camp, he acknowledged spending the offseason adding strength to fight off defenders, saying: “That’s something I didn’t do that good of a job of last year: I wasn’t making those tough catches. That’s something I’m working toward.”
Shanahan noted that some receiver did better and some did worse in Saturday’s likely final audition. He is addmittingly “always pretty hard on receivers” and insisted they all need to do better.
Shanahan also can play good cop, and he’s doled out compliments to many receivers over the past couple weeks, including the trio of Jordan Matthews, Kendrick Bourne and Richie James as they seemingly battle for a final spot on a potential six-man corps.
Shanahan said Sunday of Bourne: “He’s a big body who plays big. He’s fearless out there and is not scared to get hit. He blocks as well as any receivers we have on our team. He, like the other guys, just needs to be more consistent.”
— RUNNING BACK ROTATION: Matt Breida and Tevin Coleman figure to split time as the 49ers’ top running backs, and Shanahan indicated he has “a lot of confidence” in both and does not prefer making one into a featured back. “It doesn’t matter to me at all,” Shanahan said. “I feel that way with running backs and receivers, and really every position except O-line and quarterback. It depends what packages you want, what the mismatches are and what play you’re running.”
Slated to return to practice Monday is Jerick McKinnon, whose comeback from knee reconstruction was put on hold after a two-practice cameo. McKinnon will not play in Thursday’s exhibition finale, however.
— BOSA UPDATE: Defensive end Nick Bosa’s rehabilitation from an ankle sprain has not given the 49ers any truer indication if he’ll be ready Week 1. “We know there’s a chance of him for Week 1, that’s what we’re hoping for, but that will get a little more clear after this week,” Shanahan said.
— HEALTH CENTER: Expected to return to practice are defensive ends Dee Ford (knee) and defensive end Ronald Blair (groin), tight end George Kittle (calf), wide receiver Jalen Hurd (back), safety Adrian Colbert (hamstring), guard Joshua Garnett (finger), linebacker Elijah Lee (hand), running back Raheem Mostert (quadriceps) and defensive tackle Jullian Taylor (back).
Shanahan has received positive reports on center Weston Richburg’s rehabilitation from a quadriceps repair and he might get activated off the physically unable to perform list so he can practice this week.
