The San Francisco 49ers may have addressed most of their roster needs this offseason, but don't expect head coach Kyle Shanahan to hand out starting jobs just yet. Special teams coordinator Brant Boyer recently revealed that two key positions—punter and kick returner—will be wide open when the team hits the practice field this spring and summer.
At punter, the 49ers have brought in veteran Corliss Waitman and rookie Jack Bouwmeester to compete for the role vacated by Thomas Morstead. The duo offers an intriguing contrast: Waitman is a lefty, while Bouwmeester kicks with his right. That wasn't an accident. According to Boyer, the different spin on the ball will give returners valuable practice against both styles. "Whoever the dust settles with at that position, it'll be a great experience for those returners to have to catch those balls," he said.
Waitman brings NFL experience, with 230 career punts for 10,673 yards (a 46.4-yard average). He last played for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2025. Bouwmeester, meanwhile, comes from a standout college career at Texas in 2025 after four seasons at Utah, where he averaged 43.8 yards on 213 punts.
Over at kick returner, the competition is even more crowded. After moving on from Skyy Moore, the 49ers are looking at a deep pool of candidates from across the roster. Among the contenders are 2024 draft picks Jacob Cowing and Ricky Pearsall, 2025 rookies Jordan Watkins and Junior Bergen, undrafted free agent Wesley Grimes, and veteran Christian Kirk, who joined the team this year after eight NFL seasons.
Cowing showed promise in 2024 with 28 punt returns for 245 yards and one kickoff return for 32 yards, but he missed the entire 2025 season due to a hamstring injury suffered in preseason. Pearsall returned three punts for 41 yards in 2024. Watkins and Bergen have yet to return a kick in a regular-season game, while Grimes has only two kickoff returns to his name. With so much uncertainty, the battle for the return job promises to be one of the most compelling storylines of 49ers training camp.
For fans looking to gear up for the season, these positional battles make it an exciting time to stock up on 49ers apparel—whether you're backing a veteran or a rookie, there's no shortage of players to root for this year.