Daniel Brunskill did not get as much attention as some of his better-known teammates, but 49ers offensive line coach John Benton might’ve been onto something when he looked back on the path the club took to get to Super Bowl LIV.
“I’ve joked around that Dan Brunskill is our MVP, starting games at three different positions and we really didn't miss a beat,” Benton said during the week leading up to the game in Miami.
Brunskill proved to be the 49ers’ most-versatile offensive lineman. He started four games at right tackle for Mike McGlinchey. He stepped in for one start at left tackle for Joe Staley. Then, he started at right guard for Mike Person in the final two games of the regular season, including the Week 17 division clincher at Seattle.
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“The neat thing about Brunskill, I really believe he could play all five spots on that offensive line,” 49ers general manager John Lynch said in April.
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Brunskill’s path to the starting lineup appears to be more defined this season. While he continues to brush up on each of the five positions, he is paying particular attention to right guard. He proved himself with the 49ers after originally entering the NFL in 2017 as an undrafted free agent with the Atlanta Falcons from San Diego State. He caught the attention of the 49ers' personnel department during the spring of 2019 with the San Diego Fleet of the now-defunct Alliance of American Football.
The 49ers released Person at the start of free agency after signing veteran Tom Compton. Brunskill, Compton and, perhaps, rookie Colton McKivitz will compete for the starting job.
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“I definitely take a few more reps at right guard and focusing in on what I can do to be better at that position, specifically, a little bit more,” Brunskill said Thursday on a video call with reporters. “And, then, what I can to be better at all five positions, as a whole.”
Brunskill has been taking part in the 49ers’ virtual offseason program from North Dakota, where he is receiving assistance from his sister and his brother-in-law. Their main jobs, as Brunskill describes them, are to heave weighted balls at him to take the place of charging defensive linemen.
“You can practice your punching to simulate a defense because those have a little weight behind you,” Brunskill said. “And so I’ve been having them help me with that.
“Sometimes, I have them hold a med ball, and I do other drills off of that. They’ve definitely been very supportive and helped me the best way they could.”
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While remaining physically sharp with his technique, Brunskill said he also is gaining more knowledge of the complexities of the 49ers’ offensive scheme. He said the offensive linemen are spending a lot more time going over the nuances of coach Kyle Shanahan’s system.
“When you understand the playbook more and understand what Kyle wants to do and what the offensive line coaches are asking you to do, you can just get better at what you do on each play to make the best block and to make the block work for how the play is designed to work,” Brunskill said.