The San Francisco 49ers have put the first week of training camp in the past and are looking forward as pads are slated to come on in Week 2.
With 90 players on the team fighting for just 53 spots, every practice session is critical. The 49ers are still looking to get better, and on Monday, they made an addition to the defensive side of the ball. According to Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle, the 49ers signed CB Eli Apple and released WR Quintez Cephus, who signed last Thursday.
49ers Added CB Eli Apple on Monday
#49ers announce signing of CB Eli Apple. To make room on the roster, they released WR Quintez Cephus, who was signed Thursday.
— Eric Branch (@Eric_Branch) July 28, 2025
San Francisco had an opening created in the secondary after Renardo Green suffered a hamstring injury in practice last week, and is expected to return the week of August 14th, per head coach Kyle Shanahan.
While that is positive news in terms of the long-term outlook of his health going into the 2025 season, the 49ers wanted to add a veteran piece at the position, and Apple fits the bill.
Apple was the 10th overall pick in the 2016 NFL draft by the New York Giants, but hasn't lived up to that selection over the course of his career. Despite failing to be one of the best corners in the league, he has played for six teams, starting in several different locations.
The Ohio State product has played for the Giants, Bengals, Saints, Dolphins, Chargers, and Panthers. In 102 career games (82 starts), Apple has secured 383 total tackles, 61 pass deflections, three forced fumbles, and six interceptions.
Although he was limited to four games with the Chargers last season, he finished with a 78 overall grade (15th among 222 graded corners) and a 78.6 coverage grade (16th among 222 graded corners) on PFF. He joined the Chargers' practice squad last season in October before getting elevated to the active roster in November. A hamstring injury ended his season, but he played well in his limited games.
It'll be interesting to see how he plays in San Francisco, but Robert Saleh's scheme is very zone-based. That will allow Apple to see plays develop in front of him and react instead of having his back turned to quarterbacks when playing in man.
That should benefit him more, and with nine years of NFL experience under his belt, he should have the play recognition skills and reps needed to be a solid option in the secondary.
Who knows if they only want Apple as a camp body, but having him around as a depth piece for the season isn't a bad idea at all.