SANTA CLARA — The 49ers have three players competing for the job to start at left guard.
That means, for now, San Francisco does not have a clear-cut starter to fill the only opening on the offensive line.
Of course, that is not an ideal situation to have an unsettled spot among the group assigned to protect quarterback Brock Purdy.
Offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak acknowledges the downside of an open competition involving Connor Colby, Robert Jones and rookie Carver Willis.
But he said he also believes something positive can come from it.
“(With) three guys competing, there’s a double-edge sword to that,” Kubiak said on Sunday. “You do have to divide up the reps, and that takes some reps away from guys with the ones.
“But that’s OK because those guys are competing. And to me, when they compete, they bring the best out of each other.”
Kubiak said the shared practice snaps could benefit the team later in the season because it is likely the 49ers will need more than one of those players to take on significant roles this season.
Offensive play of the day
Wide receiver Jacob Cowing had a couple of hard falls during practice, the second of which resulted in a diving reception on a deep pass from Purdy.
Cowing had a couple of steps on cornerback Deommodore Lenoir, and he laid out to catch the 45-yard downfield throw.
Earlier, Cowing and Marques Sigle took hard spills after they both went up for a Purdy pass along the left side of the field.
This ’n’ that
—Defensive linemen CJ West and Titus Leo left the field early with undisclosed conditions. Both were slow to get up on back-to-back plays during the 11-on-11 portion of the practice.
—Right guard Dominick Puni sustained a concussion Saturday. He goes into the NFL’s return-to-play protocol. Defensive tackle Gracen Halton sat out practice with an ankle injury. Also, receiver Demarcus Robinson did not practice. No reason was immediately known for his absence.
—Veteran wide receiver Mike Evans and had a nice reception against tight coverage from Lenoir and Marques Sigle.
—Deebo Samuel had an active day, as he took several handoffs and pitches out of the backfield and came through with a nifty reception against Jack Jones and Siran Neal.
—During one-on-one drills, Samuel beat Renardo Green to haul in a 50-yard pass from Purdy.
—Toward the end of practice, Samuel appeared to injure his arm. He appeared to be in immediate discomfort, as he shook his left hand. He quickly recovered and returned to the field after sitting out just four plays.
—Undrafted rookie receiver Will Pauling had his best day on offense with a couple of nice catches, including a 6-yard touchdown reception from Mac Jones against the coverage of Jakob Robinson.
—Purdy hit De’Zhaun Stribling, who beat Lenoir, for a 25-yard touchdown. Stribling later caught a ball in the deep middle from Jones.
—Rookie receiver Wesley Grimes had a 10-yard touchdown reception from Jones against Ashtyn Davis.
—Kubiak said the joint practice Tuesday against the Los Angeles Chargers in Southern California will be used as a measuring stick for evaluating the players. He said there are ongoing discussions on the coaching staff how the team will approach the preseason game Thursday against the Chargers. Last week, the 49ers sat out all of their regulars in the exhibition opener against the Tennessee Titans.