Report: 49ers Sign Deep Threat WR Travis Benjamin

The wide receiver position is the most glaring position of need for the San Francisco 49ers now that Emmanuel Sanders has officially left for New Orleans.

The wide receiver position is the most glaring position of need for the San Francisco 49ers now that Emmanuel Sanders has officially left for New Orleans. That is why the team has reportedly signed former Los Angeles Chargers receiver Travis Benjamin.

More WR news: The #49ers are signing former #Chargers WR Travis Benjamin, source said. Added depth in SF. He gets a 1-year deal.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 24, 2020

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Benjamin and the 49ers reached an agreement on a one-year deal. It's safe to say that the value is extremely in favor of the 49ers since Benjamin is coming off of a quad injury that put him on the shelf last season.

The signing of Benjamin is by no means aimed as a replacement for Sanders. He is a player that the 49ers added out of need. The depth at the position is severely lacking. Only Deebo Samuel and Kendrick Bourne contributed last season, so the Niners need to find players to improve the quality.

Prior to free agency kicking off, I wrote an article regarding some low-cost receivers the 49ers should target. Benjamin was one of those targets because of how cheap he would come. It is a low-risk, high-reward scenario for the 49ers. 

Signing Benjamin has zero harm on the team nor does it change any draft strategy.

However, it does make it clear that the 49ers are going to release Marquise Goodwin. At this point, I see no way Goodwin makes it past the April 1 deadline before his contract is fully guaranteed for the season. 

The 49ers have been looking for trade partners for anyone interested in Goodwin's services. As expected, Goodwin has no trade value. Other than being fast, he really isn't an impact player. The fact that the 49ers kicked him over as a gunner on punt-cover special teams says a lot. 

This is why the 49ers are electing to go with Benjamin instead, despite being on and off the field the last two season. Benjamin's last impressive season was 2017, but is very well worth the time of day considering the 49ers' salary-cap space. If Benjamin can remain healthy, he could be prove to be a strong find for the Niners.