There are prominent position battles happening across the NFL. But one that has flown under the radar is the wide receiver situation for the San Francisco 49ers.
The 49ers took a sledgehammer to their receiver room when they traded Deebo Samuel to the Washington Commanders. They brought in Demarcus Robinson as a free agent and selected Jordan Watkins and Junior Bergen in April’s draft while waiting on Brandon Aiyuk to join the team as he recovers from a multi-ligament knee injury.
With Robinson also waiting for a potential suspension for a drunken driving arrest last November, there are a lot of questions when it comes to who Brock Purdy will be throwing the ball to this season. But one 49ers playmaker is already on the block and could be attempting to force his way out of San Francisco as he enters the final year of his contract.
49ers Could Trade Jauan Jennings by September
Part of the reason Jauan Jennings is on the trade block is because he voluntarily put himself on it. The starting slot receiver heading into the season, Jennings is looking for a new contract after breaking out with 77 catches, 975 yards and six touchdowns, but the 49ers have shown no inclination of giving him a new contract for several reasons.
The first is San Francisco’s financial situation. In the days when they were riding Brock Purdy’s rookie contract to the Super Bowl, the 49ers probably could afford to give Jennings a pay bump entering this season. But Purdy’s new contract will see his cap hit jump to $24.7 million next season, $30.8 million in 2027 and $57.6 million in 2028.
While Purdy could always shovel money to reduce the cap hits down the road, the 49ers also want to be careful paying Jennings. A seventh-round pick in the 2020 draft, Jennings had just 78 catches for 963 yards and seven touchdowns in the past three seasons combined before breaking out last season. San Francisco already has buyer’s remorse with Aiyuk’s contract – a four-year, $120 million deal that they were already trying to trade last April.
The situation has to be frustrating for Jennings, and even more so when he suffered a calf injury while participating in camp practice. While the injury is not a case of “holding in,” it’s clear the 29-year-old wants to get paid and requested a trade before hitting the practice field.
For the 49ers, they probably don’t want to repeat some of the drama they had a year ago. Samuel’s departure felt like a relationship that was strained on both sides before the trade to Washington, and last year’s team had weird vibes from Christian McCaffrey’s mysterious calf injury to De’Vondre Campbell walking out on his team in the middle of a game.
This should leave the 49ers open for business and floating Jennings out to a receiver-needy team as training camp progresses.