Travis Benjamin Opts Out of 2020 Season
The first 49ers player has opted out of the 2020 season.
Wide receiver Travis Benjamin posted on social media that he will sit out the upcoming season because of concerns about the coronavirus. He will collect $150,000 this year, and remain under contract with the 49ers in 2021.
Benjamin was on the roster bubble, and his contract had zero dollars guaranteed. So if he got cut, the 49ers would have paid him no money. By opting out, Benjamin secured at least some money while protecting himself and his family from COVID-19.
The deadline to opt out is Thursday at 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time.
Benjamin’s one-year absence will improve the chances that Dante Pettis and Richie James Jr. will make the 53-man roster in 2020. But if the 49ers use more 22 personnel next season, which is two tight ends, two running backs and only one wide receiver, they might keep only six wide receivers instead of the seven they kept last year. And so Pettis and James might still get cut. They need to play well in training camp to make the team.
More roster moves:
The 49ers activated running back Jeff Wilson Jr. from the Reserve/COVID-19 List just six days after he reportedly tested positive. Perhaps the test was a false positive? That, or he healed quickly. Either way, good for him. I still predict he will make the final roster over expensive veteran Tevin Coleman. Wilson Jr. is young and cheap and a good receiver for a running back.
The 49ers moved Richie James Jr. from the Reserve/COVID-19 List to the Active/Non-Football Injury List. Meaning he has recovered from the coronavirus, which he’s had since mid June, and now he simply is recovering from a broken wrist. No word yet on when the 49ers will activate him to practice.
The 49ers waived/Non-Football Injury backup nickelback D.J. Reed, who has a torn pectoral muscle. If he clears waivers, the 49ers will place him on the Injured Reserve List, which will end his season, and Jamar Taylor most likely will replace him as the backup nickelback.
UPDATE: Reed did not clear waivers. The Seahawks claimed him off waivers, according to the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. They needed a nickel back, because starter Quinton Dunbar is on the Commissioner's exempt list.
