Why Jauan Jennings is the most important nonstarter on the 49ers

ESPN ranked the 49ers #1 when looking at the rosters around the NFL, and named Jennings the most important player who doesn’t start.

A day after The Athletic reported that the San Francisco 49ers are among the most overrated teams in the NFL, ESPN projected each team’s starting lineups today and praised Kyle Shanahan’s roster.

Multiple analysts went through the biggest strength, weakness, X-Factor, and non-starter to know. Here’s the blurb about the 49ers:

Biggest strength: Offensive skill positions. RB Christian McCaffrey (led the NFL with 2,023 total yards last season), Brandon Aiyuk (1,342 receiving yards ranked seventh among WRs in 2023), Deebo Samuel (eighth among WRs with 3,751 total yards over the past three seasons) and George Kittle (TE-high 1,020 yards in 2023) are all back for 2024. As if that weren’t enough firepower, the 49ers also spent a first-round pick on WR Ricky Pearsall, who serves as short-term competition for underrated Jauan Jennings and as a long-term replacement for Samuel or Aiyuk. QB Brock Purdy is sitting pretty. — Clay

Biggest weakness: Offensive line. The 49ers are loaded, so we need to get picky by looking at the line situation next to superstar LT Trent Williams. The good news is there’s a ton of continuity. Matt Pryor (42 snaps) was the only lineman who played a snap for the Niners last season and is no longer on the roster. However, of the returning starters (LG Aaron Banks, C Jake Brendel, RGs Jon Feliciano/Spencer Burford and RT Colton McKivitz), only Feliciano showed well in Pro Football Focus grade and pass block win rate in 2023. Coach Kyle Shanahan will need to continue to scheme around this group. — Clay

X factor for 2024: The defensive line. For as star-studded as it was last season, the 49ers’ pass rush seems to be less than the sum of its parts. San Francisco has done some shuffling — out are Chase Young, Arik Armstead and Clelin Ferrell and in are Leonard Floyd, Maliek Collins and Yetur Gross-Matos — but the elite upside remains. Nick Bosa is a superstar, and two years ago both Javon Hargrave and Collins were top three in pass rush win rate among defensive tackles. — Walder

Nonstarter to know: Receiver Jauan Jennings. Yes, the 49ers have added Pearsall, and he’ll probably take Jennings’ position in the starting lineup. But Jennings will still be important to what San Francisco does on offense. He was a surprising 15th last season in the ESPN receiver tracking metrics and is well-known as one of the top run-blocking wide receivers in the NFL. — Schatz

Let’s focus on the X-factor and nonstarter, as they both should play pivotal roles in a potential Super Bowl run. The defensive line returns its two best players in Bosa and Hargrave, but the intrigue comes when you look at the wholesale changes elsewhere. Four contributors from a season ago will not return, and they were replaced by four newcomers.

Floyd isn’t an unknown. He’s an upgrade. But there are question marks about what the 49ers will get from Collins, Gross-Matos, and Jordan Elliott. None of it may ultimately matter if the Bosa-Hargrave-Floyd trio plays up to their potential. I’d expect Hargrave to take a jump in Year 2 under Kris Kocurek.

While everyone wonders how involved Ricky Pearsall—and Jacob Cowing, to a lesser extent—will be, Jennings is a player who might be the difference-maker among the wide receiver group. He was outstanding during the playoffs, and the 49ers giving Jennings an extension tells us they have plans for him in the short term.

The question is how will Shanahan find ways to get Jennings the ball, and is there a higher ceiling for him than what was initially thought? The pecking order for the wide receiver room will be a sight to see this year.