The San Francisco 49ers wide receiver competition was seen as one of the most intriguing going into training camp. With all the video, photos, reports, and tweets, there have been highlights, but no one has stood out yet. There just hasn’t been any consistency.
“There’s days,” Kyle Shanahan said on Sunday. “There’s days that you can see one guy, but to separate yourself, you’ve got to do it day in and day out and I’m still waiting for that.”
A few days later, the wide receivers haven’t done much to change Shanahan’s mind.
“It’s not just the rookie receivers,” Shanahan said in his Tuesday press conference. “It’s the veterans too. I mean [WR Dante] Pettis made a good play and caught a first down and then he fumbled it. So, there’s a number of guys out there and we need that group to step up. We have some ability in that group, but the consistency isn’t there.”
First, there are the rookies; Deebo Samuel and Jalen Hurd both have had their share of highlights, but they also have had some lowlights. Samuel went 3-3 in redzone drills but dropped a touchdown pass. Hurd has shown his versatility lining up everywhere, but has shown his rawness in some plays as well.
Then there’s the veterans. Dante Pettis has been seen as the possible No. 1. There were reports that the 49ers were less aggressive in the Odell Beckham Jr. trade because of Pettis. Behind Pettis is fellow second-year wide receiver Richie James who has had some highlight film of his own. Kendrick Bourne, Marquise Goodwin, and Trent Taylor have all made someone’s phone at one point or another. Just not on a consistent basis.
At one point it wouldn’t have been a bad guess to think the 49ers may shoulder seven wide receivers. Look at the talent they had and the youth. At this point, Shanahan indicates not a single one has been locked down yet.
“I’m expecting all those guys to do better,” Shanahan said. “And they all need to pick it up.”
They might be starting out a bit slow, but there’s plenty of camp left for the wide receivers to step things up.