San Francisco 49ers: Predicting 53-man roster after 2020 NFL Draft

Wide Receivers (7)

Deebo Samuel

Brandon Aiyuk

Kendrick Bourne

Trent Taylor

Dante Pettis or Richie James

Jauan Jennings

Jalen Hurd

Practice Squad: Chris Finke

For the sake of argument, I’m assuming full health for all players when putting this together, much as I did with Jerick McKinnon with the running backs.

If that’s the case, there are five locks at this position: Deebo Samuel, Kendrick Bourne, Trent Taylor, Jalen Hurd and rookie first-round pick Brandon Aiyuk.

From there, it’s anybody’s guess and lingering injuries from Taylor and Hurd could shake this whole thing up even more.

Dante Pettis disappeared last year, but one would think that his second-round pedigree would give him the benefit of the doubt over a late-round pick like Richie James or Jauan Jennings.

The other element to keep in mind here is that there’s a chance the 49ers end up seeing Hurd more as a move-tight end option, which could free up a spot for both Pettis and James to make this roster and fight for playing time. James’ role on special teams would factor in here as well.

The dark horse candidate is UDFA Chris Finke out of Notre Dame, nicknamed the Slippery Fox, who could slip in here if Taylor is unable to overcome his injuries. Finke is just 5-foot-9 and figures to be an option in the slot during training camp. There’s a chance, if nothing else, the 49ers try to sneak him onto the practice squad.

Jennings is also an interesting player, someone who, along with Aiyuk, was among the leaders in yards after the catch in college football last season. He also led the nation in broken tackles.

This may seem to be among the more difficult groups to figure out at this point, but if injuries don’t play a role, it might be a lot easier than originally thought.