The San Francisco 49ers will look like a different football team in 2025 after making some big changes this offseason. They traded away Deebo Samuel, drafted Mykell Williams 11th overall in April, and that's without mentioning how Brandon Aiyuk is still rehabbing from a major knee injury.
Over the last few weeks, they also extended key offensive players Brock Purdy and George Kittle. The duo will play a prominent role in San Francisco, as will 2025 fourth-round wideout Jordan Watkins, who's already made his presence felt.
Watkins has caught his teammates' attention before organized team activities (OTAs) ended on Thursday, especially Purdy (h/t Sports Illustrated's Grant Cohn).
"He's balling, man. Jordan Watkins has been balling from day one really. He's come in and he's done everything pretty right and he's been on point. He's had a lot of explosive plays down the field. Obviously, the short game, the intermediate, he's making plays all around. So, I'm excited for him. Obviously, we know it's a process throughout this whole thing, from OTAs to the 40 days away to camp, and I know he knows that. I'm really excited to keep working with him and for him to keep learning our offense and how we do things. But definitely a rookie that has popped out in front of everybody."Brock Purdy
49ers Rookie WR Jordan Watkins Has Already Stood Out in Practice
That's some big praise for a rookie who has been around for less than two months. Watkins can be productive on all three levels on the field, with the foot speed to quickly get off the line of scrimmage.
Since Aiyuk (knee) and Ricky Pearsall (hamstring) were sidelined for OTAs, the reps were there for the taking, and Watkins took full advantage of them. Mandatory minicamp (June 10-11) and training camp are the next two opportunities for Watkins to continue stacking these positive days.
Having the franchise QB publicly backing a rookie is a great first step, and when they hit the practice field again, Purdy will likely look in Watkins' direction to see what he can do with the targets.
In Watkins' college career, he had 185 catches for 2,682 receiving yards and 18 touchdowns. The chances to make a play in the 49ers' aerial attack will be there for the taking.