49ers depth chart: Predicting each wide receiver’s role in 2022
By Peter Panacy
49ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings (the third-down target)
Typically, offenses look to their biggest playmakers in third-down situations.
Or they look for a reliable possession receiver.
Jauan Jennings’ 2021 stat line doesn’t exactly stand out as impressive: 24 receptions for 282 yards and five touchdowns. But anyone fully watching 49ers games last year can probably attest to just how clutch many of those grabs were.
Case in point, 10 of those 24 catches came on third down with eight of them successfully converting beyond the first-down marker.
As was the case with his college tape, Jennings isn’t going to win any footraces. But he does have the prowess to win with physicality, using his 6-foot-3 and 212-pound frame to bully opposing defenders.
Not just as a pass-catcher but as a blocker, too. Just ask Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs.
Jennings isn’t likely to see a massive uptick in targets, receptions or yards this season. However, just like 2021, the ones he does get should be significant and timely.