The start of Jauan Jennings’ fifth season in the NFL could be in jeopardy, according to a new report from the weekend. The former Tennessee wide receiver has contract issues with the San Francisco 49ers going back to the summer, but an ongoing calf injury could be enough to put him on the shelf for at least the first four games this season.
“Jauan Jennings’ lingering calf injury and long contractual stalemate with the 49ers could combine to send him to the injured reserve list this week, multiple NFL sources indicated over the past few days,” The San Francisco Standard’s Tim Kawakami reported on Sunday.
It’s a story on two fronts for Jennings.
Back in mid-July, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Jennings, “who is scheduled to make $7.5 million this season in the final year of his deal,” was looking for either a new contract or a trade before the 2025 season. Despite Jennings’ wishes, though, the 49ers reportedly felt like they had treated Jennings fairly after a two-year, $15.39 million contract extension back in May 2024.
While he wasn’t expected to be a camp holdout back during the summer, he has been missing practices due to a calf injury. Jennings reportedly participated in the first four practices of training camp before missing time with the calf injury.
Based on several reports throughout training camp, it’s been a messy situation. Kawakami’s report on Sunday states that the 49ers’ mention of IR “could be a tacit threat to the Jennings camp to try to get him back on the practice field in time to be ready for Week 1.”
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If Jennings does end up getting placed on injury reserve, he would have to miss the first four games of the regular season at minimum. Obviously, this would hamper his opportunities for extra incentives and bonuses, which is a tricky situation for a player who is clearly looking for a payday after the career-high production that he put up last season. All in all, with the lingering contract situation at play, it doesn’t appear to be as simple as just missing time on the practice field with an injury.
“I mean, if it doesn’t heal, yes,” 49ers HC Kyle Shanahan said about the possibility of Jennings missing Week 1 against Seattle. “But I expect him to be back. I think he should be back from it, but you never know with calves.”
San Francisco played its final preseason game on Saturday night, which ended up being a one-touchdown win over the Los Angeles Chargers. On the Friday before that game, Jennings posted a song lyric on his Instagram story, which basically amounted to: You messed around with the wrong dude.
Again, it appears to be a messy situation. We’ll have to wait and see how things shake out with the 49ers with the preseason now in the rearview mirror.
Jennings stepped up in light of multiple 49ers injuries last season and produced the best statistics of his career. He totaled career highs in receptions (77), targets (113), yards (975), and touchdowns (6).
For a much more detailed look at Jennings’ ongoing situation with San Francisco, check out Tim Kawakami’s detailed report for The San Francisco Standard here.
