After having made the necessary roster cuts, the San Francisco 49ers are working on signing players to their practice squad. Here is a list of players who were signed. You will notice that all of them were initially released by the team on Saturday. There is one more spot to fill:

RB Xavier Omon, WR Joe Hastings, TE Konrad Reuland, C Chase Beeler, T Derek Hall, LB Monte Simmons, CB Cory Nelms

Here is a reminder in terms of practice squad eligibility from SBNation.com’s Brian McIntyre:

"Eligibility for the practice squad is limited to players who do not have an accrued season in the NFL, or were on an active list (53-man roster) for fewer than nine games during their only accrued seasons. Players that have served two seasons on a practice squad are eligible for a third season only if the team has at least 53 players on its active/inactive list for the duration of that player's employment.

A player will be considered to have served on a practice squad in a season if he were a member of a practice squad for three regular or postseason games during his first two practice squad seasons, or for one regular season or postseason game during a third practice squad season.

The minimum weekly salary for practice squad players in 2011 (and 2012) is $5,700, an increase of $500 over the 2008-2010 rate. There is no limit to how much a team can pay a practice squad player. Several teams have enticed players with offers of increased pay, usually a few thousand dollars extra, to join or remain on their practice squad."

The 49ers claimed rookie quarterback Scott Tolzien off waivers and cut LB Keaton Kristick. Tolzien finished the preseason with 25-of-40 for 302 yards for the San Diego Chargers. He also threw 1 touchdown and 1 interception for a passer rating of 83.5. San Francisco got a good look at Tolzien during Thursday’s preseason game, when the quarterback completed 16 of 23 pass attempts for 226 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception, but was also sacked 5 times.

San Francisco also signed LB Tavares Gooden, which means the 49ers have to cut another player to make room for him. From 2008-2010 Gooden accumulated 70 tackles in 26 games for the Baltimore Ravens.

The San Francisco 49ers finished trimming their roster from 80 players down to 53. These are the players who were cut today:

QB McLeod Bethel-Thompson, QB Josh McCown, RB Xavier Omon, FB Jack Corcoran, WR Joe Hastings, WR Chris Hogan, WR Ronald Johnson, WR Lance Long, WR Dominique Zeigler, TE Nate Lawrie, TE Konrad Reuland, C Chase Beeler, G Tony Wragge, T Derek Hall, T Kenny Wiggins, DT Brian Bulcke, NT Sealver Siliga, LB Alex Joseph, LB Kenny Rowe, LB Monte Simmons, CB Phillip Adams, CB Phillip Davis, CB Cory Nelms, S Chris Maragos, S Curtis Taylor, DB Anthony West

If you count only 26 players, that’s because tight end Nate Byham was placed on the injured reserve list.

San Francisco has currently 10 rookies on the team. Bear in mind that this is not the final roster. A lot of changes are still going to happen. By releasing Josh McCown and McLeod Bethel-Thompson, the 49ers will most certainly look to add another quarterback to their 53-man roster. The search is back on.

Once again the 49ers bounced back from a previous disastrous preseason game and showed that they can make the right adjustments, when they beat the Chargers 20-17 in the fourth and final preseason game of the season.

On the first drive of the game Alex Smith led the offense 80 yards across the field and Anthony Dixon ran for a 1-yard touchdown to open the score at Qualcomm Stadium. This drive took 7:56 minutes off the clock.

Linebacker NaVorro Bowman sacked Billy Volek on the Chargers’ first offensive series, forced and recovered a fumble. Alex Smith started a second drive on San Diego’s 22-yard line and Anthony Dixon ran for another 1-yard touchdown to give the Niners a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. “We took the opening drive all the way down and stuck it in and were able to get the ball on the turnover and put that one in as well. So it was a great start,” said Smith.

Alex Smith’s job was done. He completed 8 of his 10 attempts for 45 yards and a passer rating of 85.4, his best performance of the preseason.

The San Diego Chargers scored on the second play of the second quarter, when Ryan Mathews ran for a 56-yard touchdown to make it 14-7 at half time.

Colin Kaepernick, who played in the second quarter and the first drive of the third quarter, wasn’t as effective as Alex Smith. He threw 2 interceptions and completed 3 of his 7 pass attempts for 36 yards and a QB rating of 19.6. He also allowed San Diego’s only sack of the game.

A 49-yard field goal by David Akers and a 23-yard field goal by San Diego’s Nate Kaeding made it 17-10 at the end of the third quarter.

Josh McCown, who entered the game late in the third quarter, brought the offense into field goal distance on his first and only series. David Akers made the kick from 26 yards to give the Niners a 20-10 lead with 9:55 minutes left to play. Josh McCown completed each of his 4 passes for 51 yards and a passer rating of 118.8.

The San Diego Chargers reduced the lead to 20-17, when Seyi Ajirotutu caught a 9-yard pass from Scott Tolzien, with 1:21 minutes left in the game. The Niners recovered the ensuing onside kick and McLeod Bethel-Thompson took three knees to seal the victory.

“I was definitely pleased with the way the ones [offensive line] played,” head coach Jim Harbaugh said. “I thought they played with a lot of urgency and they challenged themselves all week. It was a short week, but it was a good week.” Alex Smith said that the offensive line played great. “The guys up front, I think they got challenged this week a little bit, and they stepped up to it,” he added.

The 49ers showed once again that they can move the chain and control the clock once they have a lead. The team rushed for 160 yards and had the ball for 35:22 minutes. Kendall Hunter rushed for 57 yards and 5.2 yards per carry. Anthony Dixon ran for 45 yards on 13 attempts and Xavier Omon added 35 yards on 11 carries.

Linebacker Aldon Smith, whom I called promising but not yet NFL-ready yesterday, tried hard to prove me wrong. He finished the game with 4 tackles and 2.5 sacks for a loss of 22 yards. “I saw him play with some passion tonight, some emotion,” Harbaugh said. “The light’s coming on more and more and he’s making really good progress.” The 49ers recorded 6 sacks altogether.

If this preseason is an indicator for the regular season I’ll take it. A bad game is followed by a game with the right changes and attitude. And remember, an 8-8 record could be enough to win the NFC West.

The San Francisco 49ers won the 39^th edition of the preseason Battle of the Bay 17-3 against the Oakland Raiders. The game delivered plenty of highlights, positives and improvements.

Head coach Jim Harbaugh wasn’t exaggerating when he repeatedly pointed out that his team was working hard last week, after a 24-3 loss at New Orleans Saints in the preseason opener. One area that needed improvement was pass protection and San Francisco’s offensive line provided their quarterbacks with it.

On the Niners’ first drive Alex Smith took the offense from their own 23-yard line to Oakland’s 2-yard line but holder Andy Lee couldn’t control a snap and threw an interception. Lee got injured on this play. He stayed on as holder but kicker David Akers took over his punting responsibilities.

San Francisco’s second drive included a 32-yard pass to wide receiver Josh Morgan but ended with an interception. “We talked about the interception,” Jim Harbaugh said. “We feel that’s a correctable thing.” The Raiders were unable to take advantage of this turnover. Jason Campbell was sacked by OLB Parys Haralson on 4^th and goal at the 49ers 2-yard line.

The highlight of the first half came on San Francisco’s 3^rd drive of the game. Wide receiver Braylon Edwards caught a pass one-handed for 32 yards. A 23-yard field goal from David Akers put the only points on the scoreboard in the first half.

With 47 seconds left in the first half cornerback Tarell Brown intercepted Trent Edwards on the 49ers 15-yard line.

Rookie running back Kendall Hunter started his night with a 53-yard touchdown to give the 49ers a 10-0 lead at the start of the second half. Safety Madieu Williams intercepted Oakland’s third quarterback Kyle Boller and the 49ers took a 10-0 lead into the 4^th quarter.

The Oakland Raiders reduced the lead to 7 on a 46-yard field goal from Sebastian Janikowski, with 12:18 left in the game. A strong running game and a clock-controlling drive ensured victory for the 49ers. A 15-play drive, which took 8:32 off the clock, made it 17-3 for the 49ers, when Xavier Omon ran for a 5-yard touchdown.

What did we learn?

A better pass protection creates a better pass offense. Alex Smith (8-of-12 for 126 yards, 1 interception) and Colin Kaepernick (6-of-8 for 52 yards) combined for 14 of 20 pass attempts and 178 yards. Kaepernick had a QB rating of 91.7 for this game.

The 49ers have a strong running game. Kendall Hunter rushed for 105 yards on 9 carries, while Anthony Dixon’s 3.9 yards per carry were the lowest among running backs. That’s the kind of offensive backfield you want to have.

WR Braylon Edwards could prove to be the go-to guy QB Alex Smith needs. He can catch a ball and can be thrown to into solid coverage.

The secondary looks very much improved. They only allowed 167 yards and intercepted the Raiders twice.

The 49ers won this year’s Battle of the Bay but more importantly, they won their first preseason game in 2011. The Niners passed well, ran well, defended well, what else could you ask for at this stage? Yesterday was a performance to build on.