Bad luck has followed Jalen Hurd since he arrived in San Francisco as a third-round choice in 2019. He has yet to play a regular-season game because of a stress fracture in his back followed a year later by a torn ACL.
Knee tendinitis has slowed Hurd during training camp, but he is set to play Sunday against the Raiders. The 49ers need to see Hurd in action to make a more informed decision about whether he can help them this season.
49ers General Manager John Lynch was asked about Hurd earlier Friday and said, “We’re holding on.”
Coach Kyle Shanahan was asked about Lynch’s comments later Friday.
“I’ve seen Jalen when he’s gone,” Shanahan said, via David Bonilla of 49erswebzone.com. “I know he’s one of our top-six receivers, so that’s not an issue. That’s how Dee Ford was last year. That’s how [Jaquiski] Tartt is. We know they’re one of our top guys at those positions, but it’s such a scary thing and hard decision for the 53. And we have other guys there after those guys who are good and who could make this team and really help us.”
Lynch expects the 49ers to go with six receivers on their 53-man roster. James will miss six weeks with a knee injury that needs surgery, which helps Hurd’s cause.
Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, Mohamed Sanu, Trent Sherfield, Nsimba Webster, Jauan Jennings and Travis Benjamin also are on the depth chart.
“You’ve got to make sure guys are healthy enough to play through the year,” Shanahan said, “that they don’t just get to Week 1 and only last a quarter-and-a-half, and then they’ve got another injury, and you’re wishing you had another guy there, but he didn’t make the 53 because of that. I mean, there’s no right or wrong answer. That’s just the challenge of it, and you try to get as much information as you can. Usually, if they can make it through a whole camp, they can make it through the season. But obviously, [players like Hurd] weren’t in a situation where they could do that. That’s the dilemma with going into camp hurt, and that’s the stress of it for everybody; coaches, players, the 53-man roster. That’s just part of it.”
Kyle Shanahan on Jalen Hurd: I know he’s one of our top-six receivers originally appeared on Pro Football Talk