5 biggest 49ers takeaways from second week of OTAs

49ers takeaway No. 3: Ray-Ray McCloud seems to be building rapport with Trey Lance

When the 49ers signed wide receiver Ray-Ray McCloud, it was to finally get a good return specialist on the roster and to help improve special teams that struggled in 2021. Any help on the actual offense would be a bonus, especially with Danny Gray drafted by the Niners to serve as the deep threat on the roster.

But if the early OTAs are any indication, McCloud could potentially be more than just a return specialist.

McCloud has been serving as a checkdown option for some passing plays, and San Francisco could do worse than McCloud to be that kind of player if it can get him into some space to allow his speed to play a role.

I wouldn’t expect McCloud to have an exceptionally large role in the offense, given the top four wide receiver options have been covered with Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, Jauan Jennings and Gray, but you can never have too much depth in a position.

It’ll be worth monitoring to see how many targets McCloud ends up getting in training camp and in the preseason games.