Veteran wide receivers Tavon Austin and JJ Nelson were signed on Saturday and onto the 49ers training ground for the team’s first training camp practice.
Both players signed one-year contracts. The 49ers gave up tight end Daniel Helm and gave up / injured wide receiver Chris Thompson to open up the roster spots.
“It was great bringing in two guys like JJ and Tavon, two guys who are NFL players who’ve done things in this league and two guys we’ve always loved,” 49ers coach Kyle said. Shanahan. “I both enjoyed getting out of college. We loved them all the time.
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The 49ers have lost three wide receivers in the offseason due to injuries to Deebo Samuel and Richie James, as well as Travis Benjamin’s decision to step down due to COVID-19 concerns.
“We needed to have more guys, just for the legs, but the fact that we have two guys who have the ability to make our roster, who could have roles on this team with their two skill sets, made me very excited to catch them, ”Shanahan says.
Austin and Nelson will have shots to earn a spot in the 49ers’ 53-man roster. This season, the NFL has increased training rosters to 16 players per team, six of whom may have any level of NFL experience.
“We weren’t sure if we were going to have one or two, but the way they looked at practice yesterday, they were both in good shape,” Shanahan said.
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Austin and Nelson arrived in Santa Clara on Wednesday and tested negative for COVID-19 each of the next three days to qualify to be allowed to train on Saturday.
“They’re going to push people to be a part of this team or hopefully they can show that they can be a part of it to help us at some point,” Shanahan said.
Austin, 30, a seven-year-old pro, was the 8th overall pick for the St. Louis Rams in 2013. Over his career, he’s only 215 receptions for 2,006 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also has 196 rushing attempts for 1,340 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Nelson, 28, was released by the Raiders in mid-October after missing an important time with an ankle injury. He played his first four seasons with the Arizona Cardinals, catching 85 passes for 1,475 yards and 11 touchdowns.
