The San Francisco 49ers may need to trade for a wide receiver right now to strengthen their Super Bowl hopes this season, but a recent development has reminded them that some of their offseason decisions were spot on.
In the offseason, the 49ers had many decisions to make at wide receiver. They moved on from Kendrick Bourne after a one-year return, and they also parted ways with Jauan Jennings, who ultimately went to the Minnesota Vikings .
Jennings, in particular, was a name that raised some eyebrows. He's an intriguing character with plenty of admirable qualities, including his toughness, but he ultimately showed that he didn't make the most of his opportunity in one of the best offensive systems in the league.
This was demonstrated further after new reports from Jay Glazer revealed the 49ers and the Vikings were exploring a possible trade for Jennings, but he didn't want to hop on a FaceTime call with Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch after an agreement was in place.
Now, if true, it shows the 49ers made the right call all along with Jennings and their management of him. Don't forget that during the 2025 training camp, he missed time with a calf injury, but it was also reported that he was exploring a new deal.
It made sense for the 49ers to consider rewarding Jennings after he enjoyed a career-best 2024 season, finishing just 25 yards short of a 1,000-yard campaign. That said, handing him a lucrative new deal was understandably something the franchise was hesitant to do. Instead, the two sides eventually agreed to an incentive-based contract that also added an extra year to his deal.
However, Jennings arguably became the architect of his own downfall from that point onwards. After dealing with injuries and the consequences of missing valuable preparation time, he struggled to build on his breakout campaign. He finished the 2025 season with 55 receptions for 643 yards and a career-high nine touchdowns across 15 games. He was playing for some of those games with injuries too.
And then, during the recent offseason, reports stated that the 49ers were willing to offer $17 million a year . He declined. Then things went quiet and he joined the Vikings on a one-year, $13 million contract, with $8 million base. So far, he's only had four receptions all year.
All that can be said is that it's a massive upgrade to have a future Hall of Famer like Mike Evans on the team for less than what they were offering Jennings, despite the unique qualities Jennings brought to the receiver corps.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/49ers/onsi as Latest Report Shows 49ers Made Right Decision Moving On From Jauan Jennings .
