One player who has taken a big step in his development is Jordan Watkins. He’s growing up right before our eyes. Physicality kept Watkins off the field at the start of the season. Remember, he was a healthy scratch in Week 1.
Watkins is still learning the ropes and figuring out what it takes to block, but he’s much improved. With a banged-up wide receiver room in Week 9, Watkins led the way with 52 snaps, 17 more than any other wideout.
He’s a player general manager John Lynch is “proud” of. Lynch walked
us through Watkins’ journey from a rookie to today:
He really stuck it out. We had a lot of high hopes for him when we brought him from Ole Miss. I remember Kyle and I being on the phone with Lane Kiffin, who was his coach there and saying, ‘Man, we see outstanding talent. Tell us about this young man.’ You know he was hampered a bit there by injuries at Ole Miss, but he’s got a lot of juice. I think what we’ve learned, and it’s been a little bit of a process.
He’s had to fight a little to get himself out on the field. There were some good options at receiver. I think there was some frustrations on Jordan’s part. To his credit, he kept going out there and grinding.
It would have been easy for Watkins to feel sorry for himself, make excuses, and be content with his situation. According to Lynch, a conversation with Kyle Shanahan helped Watkins correct his course:
He did have a conversation with Kyle. And Kyle said, ‘Man, it’s nothing that you’re not doing. Just focus on the little stuff. Everyone sees the touchdown on a post. And that was a great play. But really, what got Jordan on the field was his toughness in the run game. And becoming that guy for us. You lose a big body in Stribling. And Demarcus Robinson goes down. Somebody’s got to block on all these tosses we run. Somebody’s got to block defensive ends.
That’s not very fun when you’re a smaller body. But we needed someone to do it. Jordan, that’s the way he found his way on the field. His ability to go out there and help on special teams.
Watkins had to learn that there’s more to being a wide receiver in the NFL than running routes and catching passes. Of the 52 snaps he played against the Raiders, 28 of those were on running downs. That’s the ultimate sign that he has Shanahan’s trust.
There’s still plenty of room to grow, but we’re seeing Watkins progress in real time and respond to coaching. That explains why Lynch is proud of Watkins:
So, I’m really proud of the young man. He fought his way out there. He earned it. And not it’s starting to pay dividends for himself, and for our team, in a big way. I’m really proud of Jordan. He grinded. And now he’s kind of creating a niche. Everything in this league is earned. It doesn’t always come easy. Not everybody starts and steps in on Day 1. If you earn it, and you find a way to get yourself on the field. Then you have an opportunity. And you can make a play. And now, it’s going to be hard to get Jordan off the field, because he’s earned that right. So, I’m really excited and proud of him.
He was in the top five before this, but Watkins 60-yard touchdown catapulted him to No. 1 among all wide receivers in EPA/target. The majority of his 10 receptions have resulted in some impact play for the 49ers. Perhaps the biggest surprise is Watkins winning his 50/50 opportunities over the previous month—all the more reason to keep developing a player you may need to count on in the postseason.
Lynch concluded, “I don’t see him coming off. You play like he has been playing. The nitty-gritty. The tough stuff. Hank [49ers WR coach/passing game coordinator Leonard Hankerson] has a saying that I love. ‘No block, no rock.’ And he’s been doing a lot of block. He’s been doing the little stuff. And that’ll get you on the field around here.”
