Paying Brock Purdy and letting a slew of free agents leave did not eliminate all the 49ers’ financial hurdles this offseason.
Wide receiver Jauan Jennings wants to get paid, too. Again.
A league source confirmed that Jennings is looking to parlay a career-best season into financial gain as he enters the final season of a two-year contract extension.
If the 49ers are not willing to award him another extension before training camp, Jennings would seek a trade, as first reported Monday morning by ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Next Tuesday, July 22, is when all veterans must report to 49ers training camp or risk accruing daily fines. Jennings is not expected to hold out of camp, nor be happy if he does attend, according to Schefter. Jennings’ agent, Drew Rosenhaus, declined comment.
Jennings’ physicality has been a hallmark of the 49ers’ offense the past four seasons, whether his 6-foot-3 frame is making third-down conversions (“Third-And-Jauan”) or coming through with big-time production, including in the 2023 season’s Super Bowl defeat to Kansas City.
“I love him. He’s a beast on the field,” 49ers all-time great Jerry Rice said last week of Jennings.
Two years ago, Jennings was a restricted free agent when he agreed to a two-year, $15.4 million extension; he has a $1.2 million base salary this season and counts $4.3 million against the salary cap.
The 49ers have $48 million in salary cap space, second only to the New England Patriots ($61 million), according to the NFL Players Association.
Jennings, 28, racked up 975 yards and six touchdowns on 77 receptions last season as he became the 49ers’ de facto No. 1 wide receiver once they lost Brandon Aiyuk to an October knee injury.
Aiyuk did not participate in training camp or the preseason until agreeing to a massive extension (four years, $120 million) last Aug. 29; he is recovering from right-knee reconstruction and his availability for the start of this coming season is unclear.
A minor calf injury kept Jennings off the practice field as the 49ers concluded their offseason program a month ago, and coach Kyle Shanahan did not expect Jennings to miss camp because of the calf.
Jennings is poised to enter this season as Purdy’s top wide receiver after the 49ers paid their quarterback a franchise-record $265 million extension two months ago. Also leading their receiving corps are 2024 first-round pick Ricky Pearsall and 2025 free agency acquisition Demarcus Robinson, who could be facing a NFL suspension at the start of this season after recently pleading no contest to a misdemeanor
“If you ask Jauan, he says ‘I’m number one’. And that’s his mindset and that’s why we love Jauan,” offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak said in May. “That’s how he sees himself. He sees himself as a dominant player. You guys all saw last year when he got more chances, he played really, really well.”
Last season, Jennings came within 25 yards of his first 1,000-yard season, only to draw an ejection in the season-ending loss at Arizona after tussling with Cardinals cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting in the end zone. “All I did was pancake the guy. Played football,” Jennings said afterward of an incident that did not draw a fine. “Took him and laid him on his back. Tried to get up, and he wouldn’t let me get up. Next thing you know, they’re just looking at me like I’m the bad guy.”
Jennings was on his way toward another high-production output that game, with 52 yards on seven catches before his second-quarter ejection.
It’s not just his physical nature and chain-moving ability that’s helped Purdy and the 49ers’ offense in recent season. Jennings has big-game ability. He had 11 catches for 175 yards and three touchdowns as the 49ers lost last September’s visit to the Los Angeles Rams.
Related Articles
Joe Montana endorses 49ers paying Purdy: ‘It’s not like he hasn’t done the job’
Kyle Juszczyk hasn’t forgotten ‘three worst days of my life’ amid 49ers free agency
49ers legend Jerry Rice concerned with Aiyuk comeback, defense’s youth movement
49ers’ George Kittle is immediate crowd favorite in ACC celebrity golf debut
49ers WR Demarcus Robinson pleads no contest to misdemeanor DUI
Jennings was in contention for Super Bowl MVP as he both caught a touchdown pass (from Purdy) and threw one (to Christian McCaffrey) in the 25-22 overtime defeat to Kansas City at the end of the 2023 season.
Selected in the 2020 draft’s seventh round out of Tennessee, Jennings did not play as a rookie, with a hamstring injury foiling plans for him to come off the practice squad. He is expected to host his fourth annual youth football camp this Friday at his alma mater, Blackman High in Murfreesboro, Tenn.
