The San Francisco 49ers are hoping they have a steal in fifth round wide receiver Trent Taylor. He got plenty of Wes Welker comparisons coming out of college, and through eight practices, he has done nothing but impress coaches and teammates.
Taylor has made a host of impressive toe-tapping and one-handed catches thus far, and that has earned him a nickname. Wide receiver Aldrick Robinson said that he is calling Taylor “Toe Tap.”
Taylor is going to get opportunities as a punt returner, but the more he performs in camp, the more likely it is that we see him getting regular looks when the regular season gets here. The 49ers don’t have a dominant wide receiver depth chart, which means anybody has a chance to take firm hold of it. Pierre Garçon is the top guy on the chart, but Marquise Goodwin has been looking really good in camp. The wide receivers as a whole have been looking good thus far.
Of course, for now it remains to be seen how much of that is their own skill, and how much is question marks in the secondary. Ideally it’s more their own skill, but the preseason will start to give us a better idea of which unit is excelling and which is struggling. But for now, there are opportunities to be had, and Taylor has as good a chance as any of seeing at least some kind of role.