Why the 49ers Retained Jalen Hurd

Jalen Hurd made it onto the 53 man roster of the San Francisco 49ers.

He somehow survived being cut despite being healthy for barely a handful of practices and one preseason game.

However, Kyle Shanahan views him as one of their six best wide receivers. A claim like that is already ludicrous to begin with since he barely plays and has never showcased his talents in a real game. Either way, saying that was indicative that Shanahan would retain Hurd should he demonstrate the status of his health in the preseason finale. Since he succeeded in staying healthily for roughly 25 plays, Hurd gets the nod to stay on the team.

But there is an alternate reason why the 49ers retained Hurd.

That reason is he was a third-round pick. That is not a measly pick to be throwing around. Third-rounders are airly valuable. Cutting ties with Hurd who was the 67th pick in the 2019 NFL Draft would essentially be the 49ers throwing their hands up and saying, "We messed up!"

And to be quite frank, would anyone have blamed them for getting rid of Hurd? The guy is the most injury prone player on the team. That says a lot considering Jimmy Garoppolo, Dee Ford and Jaquiski Tartt are here. Even if Hurd is healthy for a stretch of the season, how is Shanahan going to incorporate him into the offense? He doesn't provide anything better than the players ahead of him such as Mohamed Sanu, Trent Sherfield and Jauan Jennings. Let’s face it, he didn’t show anything in the preseason finale other than a lack of burst, route running and catching ability. He even looked confused as to what he was supposed to do on a play. Playing special teams is out of the question for Hurd as it is just further exposure to injury.

How long will it be before he is injured again?

That is the risk in retaining Hurd. The time for Hurd to show the 49ers he can be a contributor in the offense was during training camp and the preseason. That is where all the high-level reps were. Now those reps are gone as the coaching staff does not spend anywhere near the same level of investment on growing players. The regular season practices are all about installing a plan that is specific to their opponent and preparing against their opponent's tendencies in a short amount of time. The last thing the 49ers are going to do is take some time aside to see where Hurd is at.

Cutting Hurd would not have had major consequences on their salary cap. Ultimately, it came down to Shanahan not being ready to let go of a player. It is the temptation of potential. So many coaches fall for this where they hold out hope for a player to get it together, whether it is health or other issues, but in the end all that hope was for naught. Cutting Hurd was the right course of action, and it is not like he wouldn't have cleared waivers. I doubt that any team would've even considered picking Hurd up, so the 49ers could have relegated him to their practice squad.

Retaining Hurd seems like a move where the 49ers will come back to and wish they didn't do it.