49ers OTAs notes: Jimmy Garoppolo rolling right along with offense

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SANTA CLARA — The 49ers continued to work on chemistry with the players healthy enough to participate during OTAs on Tuesday.

Rookie wide receiver Deebo Samuel sat out of team drills with an undisclosed minor tweak, but no other new injuries were reported.

Here is who -- and what -- else stood out from Tuesday's session. 

Jimmy G's big plays

Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who’s recovering from a torn ACL, continued to participate in individual passing and 7-on-7 drills. He will remain out of 11-on-11 work as a precautionary measure until the start of training camp, but Garoppolo still strung together a few highlights. 

Garoppolo threw one of his best passes when he connected with receiver Kendrick Bourne 15 yards down the center of the field, placing the ball just out of the reach of cornerback Richard Sherman. The QB also completed two passes to receiver Trent Taylor, who used his renewed speed to his advantage as he works back from offseason back surgery. Taylor was one of Garoppolo’s favorite targets when the quarterback first arrived in 2017, and they're working to renew that connection. 

During 7-on-7 drills in the red zone, Garoppolo passed to tight end George Kittle in the right corner of the end zone for a touchdown. Defensive back K’Waun Williams, however, argued that there should have been a penalty on Kittle for pushing off. Garoppolo also completed a pass to running back Tevin Coleman, who reached the left corner of the end zone after the catch.

Battling backup QBs shine

While Garoppolo was held out of 11-on-11 drills, C.J. Beathard and Nick Mullens continued to compete for the backup quarterback spot. 

In the 7-on-7 session, Bourne high-pointed a Beathard pass in the flat while covered by linebacker David Mayo and defensive back Dontae Johnson. Beathard relied on Taylor just as Garoppolo did, connecting with the receiver in the slot on three of four plays. Taylor didn't stick in the slot all day, and a route he ran outside the numbers offered a preview of how his versatility could figure into the 49ers offense this season. 

Mullens found Bourne over the middle in 11-on-11 drills, and the receiver showed no fear on a crossing route. While covered by Greg Mabin, Bourne still was able to haul in the pass.

Mullens' best throw of the day was to Dante Pettis, who was being tightly covered by Johnson. Johnson had no chance on the pass, as Mullens placed it where only Pettis could catch it. 

Defensive standouts  

It wasn't all offense on display Tuesday. Mabin and Elijah Lee each broke up one of Garoppolo's passes, and linebacker LaRoy Reynolds was credited with a coverage sack. 

Defensive lineman Ronald Blair III did well defending the run. When Mullens tried to hand the ball off to Jeff Wilson Jr., Blair quickly penetrated to tackle the running back behind the line of scrimmage.

[RELATED: Why Bowman always will look back fondly on time with 49ers]

Injury report

The list of players who didn’t participate in practice because of injuries included:

  • RB Matt Breida (pectoral)
  • RB Jerick McKinnon (knee)
  • RB Raheem Mostert (forearm) 
  • WR Jalen Hurd (knee)
  • TE Garrett Celek (concussion/neck) 
  • C Weston Richburg (knee/quadriceps) 
  • DE Nick Bosa (hamstring)
  • LB Kwon Alexander (knee)
  • LB Fred Warner (knee)
  • CB Jason Verrett (Achilles)
  • Safety Jimmie Ward (collarbone)
  • Safety D.J. Reed (shoulder)
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