The Texans finish the preseason facing one of the most talented teams in the league in the San Francisco 49ers. Here's a quick Know Your Foe for Kyle Shanahan's crew from the Bay Area.

Bold/Italic - 2022 Rookie

How this team was built

Drafted/original college undrafted free agents - 49
Acquired through trade, waivers, etc - 32

Quarterback

5 - Trey Lance
7 - Nate Sudfield
14 - Brock Purdy
10 - Jimmy Garoppolo
The third preseason game is a complete mystery to me, but Lance isn't to the Texans. He started and played for an injured Garoppolo last December in the Niners win over the Texans in Santa Clara. How much does he play this time? Does he play at all this time? No idea but it'll be limited, if at all. Sudfield and Purdy will see significant time, I'd imagine, and I'm excited to see the rookie Purdy after his long storied career at Iowa State. Garoppolo is on the roster, but won't play.

Running Back

25 - Elijah Mitchell
22 - Jeff Wilson Jr.
28 - Trey Sermon
32 - Tyrion Davis-Price
23 - JaMycal Hasty
41 - Jordan Mason
The 49ers have RBs for days and this is a solid group. When Mitchell is fully healthy, he's THE guy, but in a preseason context, no clue as to the rotation. We should see Davis-Price a ton and Sermon has plenty to prove after being drafted in the third round last year.

Fullback

44 - Kyle Juszczyk
The best. He's a Top 100 player in this league and does everything. I don't think he'll play much, if at all. It's a GRIND for fullbacks in this league and keeping Juice Check (nickname) healthy for 17 games is paramount for the 49ers. If he does play, one series, tops.

Wide Receiver

19 - Deebo Samuel
11 - Brandon Aiyuk
15 - Jauan Jennings
86 - Danny Gray
17 - Malik Turner
6 - Marcus Johnson
83 - Tay Martin
3 - Ray-Ray McCloud
83 - Willie Snead IV
Deebo's back and Aiyuk's had a tremendous camp. Gray made a terrific impression on the Niners brass and Jennings is arguably the best number three receiving option in the league. Top to bottom, this might be the most complete group of receivers in the league. Speed. Size. Physicality. Catch-and-run ability. It's got everything. How much do Samuel/Aiyuk play? I'd set the over/under at one play and take the under. Gray should get a chance to show off the speed and athleticism that made him a third round pick, though.

Tight End

85 - George Kittle
89 - Charlie Woerner
47 - Tyler Kroft
82 - Ross Dwelley
49 - Troy Fumagalli
Kittle's on everyone's fantasy team and is one of the best in the league. But, this won't be his night. It's a veteran group so Woerner and the rest of the TE gang should see the field plenty.

Offensive Line

OT - 71 - Trent Williams
OG - 65 - Aaron Banks
OC - 64 - Jake Brendel
OG - 74 - Spencer Burford
OT - 69 - Mike McGlinchey
OT - 68 - Colton McKivitz
OG - 62 - Jason Poe
OC/OG - 60 - Daniel Brunskill
OG - 66 - Keaton Sutherland
OC - 61 - Dohnovan West
OG/OT - 63 - Nick Zakelj
OT - 76 - Jaylon Moore
OT - 67 - Justin Skule
OT - 79 - Jordan Mills
OT - 77 - Alfredo Gutierrez
Outside of Laremy Tunsil, there's no left tackle I'd want on my squad more than big Trent Williams. Stud. Love him and will hate not seeing him compete in this game. He isn't going to play. But, the rest of the OL, minus, potentially, McGlinchey, needs to get reps. A ton of question marks at every other position, but there are some talented answers on this roster. Burford is a rookie from UTSA and learning to play guard after playing tackle for his hometown Roadrunners in college.

Defensive Line

97 - Nick Bosa
99 - Javon Kinlaw
91 - Arik Armstead
56 - Samson Ebukam
94 - Charles Omenihu
98 - Hassan Ridgeway
90 - Kevin Givens
95 - Drake Jackson
75 - Jordan Willis
77 - Kevin Atkins
78 - Akeem Spence
92 - Kerry Hyder
53 - Kemoko Turay
58 - Alex Barrett
This is arguably the best defensive line in the league. I don't know, maybe it's inarguable. Bosa, a healthy Kinlaw, Armstead and Ebukam as the front four?? With starting level backups like Omenihu, Ridgeway and 2nd round rookie Drake Jackson?? Wow. This group, regardless of who starts/plays, will put significant pressure on the Texans offensive line on Thursday night, to say the least.

Outside Linebacker

54 - Fred Warner
57 - Dre Greenlaw
51 - Azeez Al-Shaair
45 - Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles
48 - Oren Burks59 - Curtis Robinson
49 - Segun Olubi
40 - Marcelino McCrary-Ball
There's a case to be made for Warner as the best LB in the league, if not a lock as a top two player at his position. Greenlaw was an outstanding find in the fifth round in 2019. That duo is nasty, and the depth is solid, led by Al-Shaair, who is an underrated depth piece in that group. We should see plenty of 51 on Thursday night.

Safeties

1 - Jimmie Ward
29 - Talanoa Hufanga
33 - Tarvarius Moore
30 - George Odum
Tashaun Gipson
41 - *Tayler Hawkins**
Ward is a bonafide top five safety in the league so I don't know how much we'll see of him. Hufanga was one of my surprise players in the 2021 draft and the Niners could have another day three steal as he, potentially, takes over for Jaquiski Tartt. Gipson, former Texan, signed with the 49ers just a day ago. Moore and Odum, in addition to Ward and Hufanga, make this a stacked safety group.

Cornerbacks

4 - Emmanuel Moseley
35 - Charvarius Ward
26 - Samuel Womack III
27 - Dontae Johnson
20 - Ambry Thomas
38 - Deommodore Lenoir
36 - Tariq Castro-Fields
24 - Ka'dar Hollman
43 - Qwuantrezz Knight
25 - Ken Crawley
If the 49ers have any sort of achilles heel on defense, it's at cornerback. But, even saying that is a stretch, honestly. C. Ward had a great training camp, apparently, which should give the Niners comfort that they have a solid pair of starting CBs, if nothing else. They took a couple of day three fliers on height/weight/speed guys in Castro-Fields and Womack III so I'd assume we'll see them play a bunch against these Texans receivers.

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