5 49ers players who need a strong showing in training camp

No. 4: Wide Receiver Richie James

As I mentioned before, this year is going to be different for rookies in terms of their chances of making the roster.

Last year, every draft pick made the roster, which is very unusual in the NFL. There is close to no chance of this happening again this year, especially with 2018 fourth rounder Kentavius Street expected to redshirt his rookie year recovering from a torn ACL.

Richie James is a seventh-round pick but has huge playmaking abilities. I covered his outstanding receiving skills here, but to put it short, James is the prototypical Kyle Shanahan receiver. He is a great fit for this team’s offense.

However, the receiving core on this team is crowded. Pierre Garcon, Marquise Goodwin, Trent Taylor, Kendrick Bourne and Dante Pettis are all locks to make the team. Six is a good number of receivers to carry on a roster, so that would leave one more spot. James would have to compete with Aldrick Robinson (who I’ll talk about later) and Aaron Burbridge. This will be a fierce competition, as Burbridge has been playing very solid special teams.

Coaches love skill players who have the versatility to play on special teams, so it will be a tough battle.

James is going to have to live up to the hype surrounding him in order to steal that sixth receiver spot over Robinson and Burbridge.