49ers roster: 4 players with most to lose in preseason vs. Raiders
By Peter Panacy
No. 3: 49ers Wide Receiver Travis Benjamin
Earlier in training camp, San Francisco’s wide receiver room was an open-ended question mark behind the two starters, Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel.
In the weeks that followed, though, there has been a lot more clarity.
Trent Sherfield has all but secured himself a spot, and it’s looking as if Kyle Shanahan will comfortably name the veteran, Mohamed Sanu, to the regular-season roster, too.
Assuming Shanahan keeps six wideouts on the 53-man roster, it’s easy to see how there’s not exactly a lot of room on the back end of the depth chart. This potentially puts other fringe receivers like Jauan Jennings, Jalen Hurd, Nsimba Webster and Travis Benjamin at risk.
Jennings, too, has been a positive standout. Perhaps as a backup to Sanu.
Benjamin, meanwhile, has dealt with injuries since 2018 and also opted out from his 2020 campaign. Kyle Shanahan certainly appreciates the 5-foot-10, 175-pound receiver’s speed. But at 31 years old, it’s probably safe to assume Benjamin has lost a little bit of a step.
And if Shanahan elects not to retain Benjamin as a gadget-type field-stretching receiver this season, there’s a good chance few teams will be pouncing on the veteran if he were to become available after the preseason ends.