The joy that former Tennessee wide receiver Jauan Jennings was feeling after being drafted by the 49ers was undeniable.
The club used the No. 217 pick of the 2020 NFL Draft to select Jennings, and the receiver could not contain his enthusiasm. He had an ear-to-ear grin for the majority of his video call with local Bay Area Media and revealed that he had been “too excited to stop jumping around the house” with his family.
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Jennings met with the 49ers at the NFL Scouting Combine and while they were positive about many aspects of his game, they were also very honest about what the former Volunteer needed to work on.
“They loved my film, they loved my tape,” Jennings said. “They just really needed me to basically dive deep in myself to work harder, and I take that upon myself to do so.”
Jennings is 6-foot-3, 215 pounds with a similar build to his former Tennessee teammate Jalen Hurd. Jennings’ film shows he is a physical receiver with strong hands, who uses his body to dominate defensive backs.
Jennings admires physical receivers, modeling his game after NFL free agent receiver Brandon Marshall and Cleveland Browns Jarvis Landry. Jennings broke 30 tackles in the 2019 season with Tennessee, according to Pro Football Focus, the most in the country.
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“Definitely going to bring that physicality to every game,” Jennings said. “That’s always been a part of me. That’s not just in the blocking game, because I do love to block, but that’s also when it comes to me catching the ball.
“Great receiver after the catch, and I take pride in that, and I believe in myself to be able to do that at a high level.”
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Jennings is familiar with coach Kyle Shanahan’s offensive system after watching the post season and knows it will be a challenge to learn. If he had his choice, he’d already be at the team facility getting started.
“I’m just excited to get there and be a part of a great team that they already have,” Jennings said. “Just for me to come there it’s a blessing and I’m extremely grateful and I can’t wait to go and work my butt off for them. They gave me a chance and I’m just going to do my best not to disappoint.”
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The 49ers developed Deebo Samuel into a key part of the offense in his 2019 rookie campaign, and Jennings would love to follow in his footsteps. With Jennings' size and physicality, it’s not a stretch that he could grow into a similar role.
“He’s always had that dog, that great attitude that I’m going to bring as well,” Jennings said of Samuel. “And Jimmy Garoppolo, you got him in the backfield throwing the rock. It’s just going to be hard to stop us in my mindset. We got a lot of weapons and I just can’t wait to go out there and help.”