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San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jalen Hurd missed his entire rookie season, finding himself placed on the injured reserve list after a stress fracture in his back was discovered last summer.
49ers general manager John Lynch, in the week following a controversial 2020 NFL Draft, that saw San Francisco pass on top wide-receiver talents, assured that the 24-year-old Hurd is on track and rehabilitating for the upcoming season.
Per Matt Maiocco in NBC Sports Bay Area:
“He is cleared. We're ramping him up. We are very optimistic,” Lynch said. “I don't want to be overly optimistic because last year we saw some progress and then we had some setbacks.
“We love his skill set. We love his mindset,” Lynch said. “Now it's time to put it all to work.”
Hurd, a four-year collegiate athlete first with Tennessee and later, spending his senior season, with Baylor, was selected in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the 49ers. San Francisco traded down one spot with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Thursday in the first round, opting to select South Carolina defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw with the 14th overall pick in the draft. That same night, the Niners did eventually take a wideout to bolster their imperfect wide receiver corps, selecting Arizona State receiver Brandon Aiyuk with the Minnesota Vikings' 25th overall pick.
The 49ers' receivers in 2019 were led by star tight end George Kittle, with veteran wideout Emmanuel Sanders, who joined the club mid-season in 2019, departing in free agency for the New Orleans Saints, and rookie Deebo Samuel on track to be an impact pass-catcher. San Francisco also selected, in later rounds, Georgia tight end Charlie Woerner and Tennessee wide receiver Jauan Jennings, a former teammate of Hurd with the Volunteers.
