3 shocking cuts 49ers could make before Week 1

No. 2: 49ers Wide Receiver Jalen Hurd

There’s a good chunk of the Niners fanbase which thinks wide receiver Jalen Hurd is going to be a potential superstar.

Perhaps. But he also could end up being an injury bust.

That’s to no fault of his own. Yet before one crowns him as a bona fide offensive weapon, it’s important to acknowledge the fact he has yet to step foot on the field in a regular-season game, thanks to the back injury suffered in the preseason a year ago.

That injury even kept Hurd from traveling with the team to Miami for the Super Bowl. And while Hurd has since been cleared from his injury and has resumed workouts, the former collegiate running back-turned wide receiver still has a long way to go.

Both in terms of rehabilitating from the injury and learning the nuances of a still-relatively new position.

Hurd’s third-round rookie contract makes the financial details of being waived negligible. It’s also unlikely the 49ers simply part ways with Hurd merely because of any slow developments. If he fails to make the roster in 2020, he’ll likely receive another redshirted year on the injury list.

But that could be a significant development, too, as San Francisco has yet to receive the kind of production desired from a third-round draft choice.

All one can do is hope he returns fully healthy and shows the flash seen early in the preseason his rookie year.