SANTA CLARA, Calif. — As the San Francisco 49ers continue to work on trying to sign receiver Brandon Aiyuk to a long-term contract extension, they handled another important piece of wideout-related business Wednesday.
Restricted free agent Jauan Jennings, who has emerged as the team’s reliable third receiver option over the past three seasons, agreed to a two-year contract with the Niners that will keep him in San Francisco through the 2025 season.
Jennings did not sign his restricted free agent tender and instead did this deal, which is akin to a one-year extension.
The contract is worth up to $15.4 million, including $10.5 million guaranteed, agents Drew and Jason Rosenhaus told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Jennings had not been participating in organized team activities because he was technically not under contract as he and the Niners worked on striking a deal. San Francisco placed the second-round tender on Jennings in March, which meant Jennings could shop elsewhere for a new deal but the Niners would have the right to match any outside offer or receive a second-round choice if they did not match.
While Jennings did not receive any outside offers, he also had not signed his tender, which is why he had not been in Santa Clara for OTAs. But Jennings was on the field Wednesday as the Niners held their second OTA open to media.
At the NFL combine in February, Niners general manager John Lynch said the team was interested in working out an extension with Jennings. The 49ers have done similar short-term deals with key players such as linebacker Dre Greenlaw and right tackle Colton McKivitz in recent seasons.
A former seventh-round pick out of Tennessee, Jennings has played in 45 regular-season games with 78 catches for 963 yards and seven touchdowns while also serving as one of the team’s best outside run blockers.
Had the 49ers won Super Bowl LVIII against the Kansas City Chiefs, Jennings might have been that game’s Most Valuable Player. He had four catches for 42 yards and a touchdown and threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to running back Christian McCaffrey before the Niners fell 25-22 in overtime.
“I think every single person in the NFL that watches tape, every general manager, every scout, anybody that watches tape, they look at Jauan’s film and they’re like, ‘Holy cow, this guy is one of one,'” tight end George Kittle said. “His mindset and his attitude when he’s on a football field is completely different. He goes to that dark place that Coach Shanahan will talk about with like Pierre Garcon and he just is very violent in the way that he plays the game, which you don’t see in all receivers. He will hit defensive ends as hard as he can. He’ll hit linebackers as hard as he can. He’s not scared of anything.”
Aiyuk, meanwhile, is still in the midst of negotiations on what will presumably be a much bigger and longer deal. He has not been participating in the voluntary portion of the offseason program.