There are a lot of players on NFL rosters and even more on the practice squad or injured reserve, so it can be easy to forget some of them. It certainly came as a bit of a shock to some San Francisco 49ers fans that wide receiver Trent Taylor is still on the team.
Several Niners players recently attended a San Jose Sharks game, and most of the names made sense. Star quarterback Brock Purdy, star tight end George Kittle, fullback Kyle Juszczyk, center Jake Brendel, and right tackle Colton McKivitz are all starters, but Tayllor was also there as well.
In a picture from the outing, Taylor is fitting on the side almost out of frame. He hasn't exactly been involved with the 49ers at all this season since he was put on injured reserve back in June.
Taylor was originally drafted by the Niners in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft. The dream was that he would develop into a Wes Welker-like slot receiver, given his smaller frame, but that is not quite how things worked out.
He had a solid rookie season in San Francisco, playing in 15 games and recording 430 receiving yards and two touchdowns. His production went down in year two with the Niners, and he missed all of 2019 with an injury.
The Louisiana Tech product did not do much in 2020 and moved on to other teams like the Cincinnati Bengals and Chicago Bears where he primarily served as a punt returner, something he did a little bit with San Francisco.
The 49ers decided to bring him back in 2024 by signing him to the practice squad. Due to injuries, he was elevated twice on game day and recorded one catch for 11 yards.
Now, he may not be playing for the Niners, but he still gets to go hang out at the Sharks game and also recently attended a team holiday party.
Even though the 49ers have had a lot of injuries at wide receiver this season, they thankfully have not needed Taylor at all. Ricky Pearsall will miss yet another game this week, but Kendrick Bourne and Demarcus Robinson will fill in.
Additionally, the Niners haven't needed Taylor as a punt returner, thanks to the emergence of Skyy Moore, who may be the best return threat they've had since Ted Ginn.
Hopefully, Taylor can get back on the field at some point in the future, but it is nice to see he is still well-liked by the team and gets to hang out with everyone even if he is not playing.