5 critical problems 49ers could face in 2020

No. 5: 49ers’ youth movement at wide receiver fails

From the looks of it, head coach Kyle Shanahan is pretty comfortable running with a pretty young group of wide receivers for the upcoming season.

Having let Emmanuel Sanders leave in free agency and traded away Marquise Goodwin during the NFL Draft, the oldest player currently in the 49ers’ wide receiver group is Travis Benjamin, and he’s no lock to make the roster.

If you remove Benjamin, the most senior player in terms of age is Trent Taylor at 26 years old, but he’s only completed two NFL seasons. Kendrick Bourne, who is entering his fourth season, then is the longest-tenured 49ers wideout in terms of NFL experience. He’ll turn 25 years old in early August.

But the highest expectations for the unit exist for two of the least seasoned players on the roster: second-year receiver Deebo Samuel and rookie pass-catcher Brandon Aiyuk.

For Samuel, that will mean at least a repeat of his 71 touches, 961 total scrimmage yards and six touchdown performance during his rookie season, with Aiyuk quickly acclimating to the NFL and Shanahan’s system to essentially become the new Deebo.

This is to say that there remains a chance not having a proven veteran on the roster (and I’m sorry, but Benjamin doesn’t count, even if he does make the team) could be a problem for the 49ers offense.

This is a different issue than whether or not Taylor or Jalen Hurd will be healthy and useful or what will happen to Dante Pettis. It’s simply a matter of if the team can overcome the youth of its receivers and still have success on offense.

In other words, the 49ers will need some of these young guys to play like veterans. If not, it could spell trouble for the Niners this coming season.