San Francisco

49ers

The 49ers continue to be extra cautious with their No. 1 wide receiver, whose expected return-to-play date falls in the Weeks 5-6 range. A recent beat report suggested Aiyuk is ahead of schedule and has a chance to suit up for Week 1, though this outcome should be considered somewhat unlikely at this time. The 49ers also placed OL Andre Dillard, DE Yetur Gross-Matos, S Malik Mustapha and LB Curtis Robinson on the active/PUP list while OT Ben Bartch and S George Odum landed on the active/non-football injury list.

Pearsall “tweaked” his hamstring on May 29th. On June 10th, head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters that he expected Pearsall to be ready for training camp, but updates have been scarce since then. Hopefully, Pearsall is removed from the active/PUP list before long. He notably suffered a hamstring strain in mid-July last year, which bothered him for nearly two weeks.

Collins signing is notable as the 2025 second-round picks have been in a stand-off from signing due to disputes over contract guarantees. ESPN’s Adam Schefter notes that the 49ers signing their No. 43 overall pick “is expected to trigger multiple second-round signings.” Collins gets a four-year, $10.3 million deal that includes over $9 million guaranteed; 88 percent of his deal is guaranteed, a jump from last year’s No. 43 pick. Houston’s Jayden Higgins and Cleveland’s Carson Schwesinger signed fully-guaranteed deals that kept this year’s second-rounders in a holding pattern.

Rourke was selected by the 49ers in the seventh round of the 2025 NFL Draft. He played through all of his final college season at Indiana with a torn ACL and was expected to miss time as he recovers for his rookie year. Expected to be placed on the non-football injury list, Rourke is unlikely to be an impactful backup behind Brock Purdy this season. Mac Jones will maintain the No. 2 spot on the quarterback depth chart.

This comes after it was announced that Jennings was seeking either a new contract or a trade before the start of this season. Jennings reporting to camp is good in theory, but as Barrows also points out, last year’s Brandon Aiyuk situation showed a player reporting to camp while in a contract dispute can be anything but beneficial. In recent years, players have resorted to “hold-ins” during camp to avoid fines for not reporting, which could be Jennings’ approach when he does report next week. We’ll likely get a better sense of where things are headed with this situation as camp draws nearer.

It’s odd that this would come out a week before training camp rather than earlier in the offseason, but Jennings’ desire for a new deal is warranted. The sixth-year receiver is coming off a breakout season in which he caught 77 passes for 975 yards and six touchdowns — all career-highs, and is expected to play a significant role this season. The 49ers extended Jennings’ contract last season, but he’s set to earn just $7.5 million in the final year of his deal, which is well-below what a player of his caliber should be earning. With Brandon Aiyuk (knee) a likely PUP candidate and Ricky Pearsall entering the season with much to prove, it goes without saying that Jennings is the best available receiver on the 49ers right now, which could spur the team to get a new deal done. That said, we’ve seen the Niners drag out contract discussions before, and wouldn’t expect anything immediate as this story continues to develop.

Cowing boasts 4.3 speed and reportedly added weight in the offseason after weighing in at 168 pounds as a rookie. With Samuel now in Washington and Aiyuk (knee) a candidate to open the season on the PUP list, it’s easy to see an early path for Cowing to earn more opportunities this season. Last year’s first-rounder, Ricky Pearsall, is also expected to see an uptick in targets and Jauan Jennings is coming off a breakout season (77-975-6), but Cowing makes for an interesting late-round target in deeper leagues given the current state of the Niners’ receiving room. Cowing caught 316 passes for 4,477 yards and 33 touchdowns during five college seasons while averaging a solid 6.3 yards after the catch per reception.

The buzz continues to build around McCaffrey, who battled through bilateral Achilles tendinitis last season and was limited to just four games after suffering a PCL sprain in Week 13. McCaffrey, 29, totaled just 348 yards from scrimmage and one touchdown last season, but totaled 2,023 yards and 21 touchdowns in 2023. Assuming he stays healthy this season, McCaffrey has the chance to be poised for another big season. The veteran running back has averaged 22.1 PPR points per game in 31 games with the 49ers since being traded to them midway through the 2022 season. He’s still a three-down threat who possesses elite pass-catching upside, and could see a workload similar to 2023, when he led the league with 339 touches. As McCaffrey’s ADP continues to creep higher into the first round, it sounds like there is little reason to fade him at this point in time.

Maiocco said Aiyuk is doing well in his ACL and MCL injury recovery, saying the knee is ahead of schedule. However, the 49ers “want to be extra cautious with him” and “the feeling inside the organization has always been don’t take any chances.” Maiocco expects Aiyuk to be placed on the PUP list when veterans report to training camp on July 22 and to remain on the PUP list when the regular season begins. Returning in Week 5 or Week 6 is “quite possible” and Maiocco believes Aiyuk will get up to speed quickly.

Robinson was ordered to pay a $390 fine and to complete court-mandated programs, including a three-month alcohol education program. He was arrested in November 2024 after being observed by police officers driving more than 100 MPH. The arrest occurred while Robinson was a member of the Rams. Robinson could still be suspended by the league, but the commissioner’s office hasn’t taken any action yet. The 49ers reportedly knew that a suspension was possible when they signed him this offseason.