The 49ers made a series of gambles on roster cutdown day, letting go of some young preseason standouts in the hope of signing them to the practice squad.

Two of those bets backfired on Wednesday as a pair of undrafted players were claimed off waivers by NFC rivals.

Tackle Ilm Manning was claimed by the Cardinals, who also snapped up interior offensive lineman Keith Ismael, a former fourth-round pick of Washington. Meanwhile, cornerback D'Shawn Jamison was claimed by the Panthers.

Jamison is the biggest loss of the two. The former Texas corner was praised effusively by coaches and players alike during training camp, offered inside-out versatility and some kick return upside. Previously considered a strong bet for the 53-man roster, the 49ers will now have to watch him bring those traits to a seemingly ascending Panthers team.

Manning was a surprise preseason star at left tackle, shining despite being undersized for the position at 6ft 2in and 294 pounds. 

The 49ers likely won't lose much sleep about him going to a Cardinals team clearly in the midst of a rebuild, but the departures of him and Ismael, who can play guard and center and already had regular-season experience under his belt with Washington, rob the Niners of potentially extremely useful depth in the trenches.

49ers’ Week 1 opponents make key defensive addition

A strong foe just got stronger.

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