San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jordan Watkins hauled in four catches for a game-high 64 receiving yards on eight targets in Thursday night's preseason finale against the Las Vegas Raiders.
In addition to his involvement in the passing attack, Watkins was more active in the rushing game. He carried the ball three times for 27 yards, averaging 9.0 yards per attempt.
That dual-threat performance came in response to a challenge from his head coach, Kyle Shanahan.
"That's something that I've had to adapt to," Watkins said after the game. "Kyle challenged me last season to really be more physical, and that's something I really worked on. It had to do with bulking up a little bit and putting on some muscle.
"I feel like I really did a good job in the run game, especially after that first preseason game. Going into the second one, I felt like we had some really good blocking plays, and that carried over to this week as well."
Watkins didn't have a carry in the 49ers' first two preseason games, but his display of versatility could help his chances of making the roster with the 53-man roster cutdown deadline approaching Sunday.
The 49ers selected Watkins in the fourth round out of Ole Miss in the 2025 NFL Draft. The young wide receiver understands the challenge of earning a spot on a veteran-filled roster.
"A lot of guys have been here for a very long time," Watkins said. "But I feel like you just got to get in where you fit in. I feel like Kyle and [GM] John [Lynch] drafted me here for a reason, and that's because they see that I can make plays in this offense and that I fit in this offense.
"So I just got to figure out what that reason is, and embrace it to the best of my ability, and that's just having to do with embracing my role."
Mentioned in this article: Jordan Watkins
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