Jauan Jennings Wants a New Deal or Trade
Here we go again.
It appeared the San Francisco 49ers were finally going to make it out of the offseason free of drama, but once again the fandom will have to stress over another contract dispute. Emerging wideout Jauan Jennings is reportedly seeking a contract extension or a trade, via Adam Schefter on X Monday morning.
Jennings, who just signed a contract extension last season, is looking to cash in on his soon to be major role in the 49ers’ offense with WR Brandon Aiyuk likely sidelined to start the season. The team signed Jennings to a two-year, $15.39 million contract just last May, but it no longer seems like enough for a receiver that was one of the only bright spots in the 49ers’ forgettable 6-11 record last season. Jennings posted a career-year in 2024, raking in 77 catches for 975 yards and 6 scores in 15 games, which landed him a top-25 ranking per FantasyPros.
The 49ers are in a difficult spot when it comes to Jennings. On one hand, he delivered his best performance when given the opportunity, making you wonder if he’s closer to a WR2 than a WR3. On the other hand, the team drafted WR Ricky Pearsall in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, with the intention of playing him in the slot. That means the 49ers have the option to stay cheaper and younger when it comes to their receiving core.
Jennings plays his best football out of the slot, averaging 2.47 yards per route run when lined up in that position. That drops to 1.35 YPRR when he is lined up out wide, ranking in the bottom half of receivers per PFF. The team has also added WR Demarcus Robinson, and has drafted WRs Jacob Cowing and Jordan Watkins in the last two drafts, so further investing big money into the position may be difficult after giving Brandon Aiyuk a massive four-year, $120 million deal following last offseason’s holdout.
The timing of the demand puts the 49ers in a tough spot. Jennings has been a very good player and teammate and stepped up when the team needed him. So, after outplaying his previous deal it would behoove the team to reward him, at least to avoid more drama. However, they may not have much choice unless they want to call his bluff. Moving on from Deebo Samuel and not having Aiyuk for a chunk of the season meant the team was going to be relying on Jennings quite a bit.
A trade at this time seems unlikely. While plenty of teams could use a receiver of Jennings talents, moving on from him would put the 49ers extremely thin at the position. With veterans reporting to training camp on July 22nd, there isn’t much time for general manager John Lynch to make a decision on how to handle this.
(This article was written in collaboration with Nate Soria and Zach Grier)