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Updates from Week 4
Preseason Updates: Quarterbacks
Offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel's offense has featured diverse personnel usage, physicality in the run game, and explosives in the vertical passing game, with as many as 12 different players receiving a target in any given game. The first team played four snaps in Game 3, punctuating their time with a 65-yard touchdown from Justin Herbert to Quentin Johnston. Johnston, whose confidence in the offense has been on display throughout camp, offered this assessment: "We got a supreme quarterback, supreme offensive coordinator, and we got all the pieces that fit in and mesh well. I'm excited for us. I'm glad I got a quarterback that can get the ball out there like that. I always still go back at film and get amazed at some of the passes and how far he throws the ball. Fun to be a part of." It is worth noting that Tua Tagovailoa led the NFL in passing yards in 2023 running McDaniel's offense. Coach Jim Harbaugh seemed content with the team's performance in the final preseason game: "I was pleased with many things about it. It was important to everybody that played, everybody that wasn't playing." Linebacker Daiyan Henley offered perhaps the most telling read on Herbert's command of the system, speaking to the quarterback's ownership of the offense: "I want to say he loves it. Not only does he love it, but it's becoming him in the sense of the ownership. … With Justin, he dives in so deep into what he's doing. It becomes him. … I can see how much time he's spent, how much dedication he's putting into not only studying with Coach Mike but studying on his own. Every time I walk past the QB room, his head is down, and he's in his notes. To say that he's locked in is an understatement. The best way to describe this offense is that it's becoming him."
Preseason Updates: Running Backs
Omarion Hampton handles heavy volume, Keaton Mitchell functions as a change of pace and is featured in jet sweep and motion concepts, and Kimani Vidal is a trusted pass protector who would see increased volume if Hampton missed time. The Athletic's Daniel Popper added perspective on Hampton amid what he called the "Hot Hand Saga": "Omarion Hampton is really, really, really good at football. He can play in any scheme. I wouldn't overthink it. Omarion Hampton is the guy." McDaniel drew a notable comparison when assessing Hampton's skill set: "O reminds me—the way he plays with the ball in his hands in space, the way he sets up his blockers by pressing and bringing the ball all the way to the heels of the blockers—of somebody that is close to my heart and core. That's Terrell Davis. That's who I grew up watching. And so there's similarities that have really struck with me. If you're a talented ball carrier, the cool thing about the run game is all you're trying to do is create, you're trying to maximize the amount of space that a ball carrier can have to utilize the skill set. So it's very easy in the run game to adjust for high-producing, high-yards-per-carry players. I'm really excited about O because I think he's an extremely hard guy to tackle that's just starting to find his true NFL confidence. And guys with confidence with that amount of skill set, watch out." Mitchell has missed multiple days of practice with injury, and McDaniel acknowledged a mild setback at the position: "I think the running back position is, we sustained a mild setback with Keaton, but realistically, that's a position that you're always wanting to have three, and I like what our young guys are doing to press into that group." The team has offered few details about Mitchell's status. Fullback Alec Ingold rounds out the final roster.