Why the 49ers Signed Trent Taylor

As a placeholder, Taylor is a tremendous fit, because he's friends with George Kittle and Kyle Juszczyk.

It's hard to say why exactly the 49ers just signed Trent Taylor to a one-year deal.

Sure, they drafted him in 2017, and he had a couple decent seasons for them as their slot receiver. But he'll turn 30 on April 30, and he caught zero passes last season, six in 2022 and two in 2021. So he hasn't exactly been tearing it up since he left the 49ers.

They most likely signed Taylor to return punts, considering they recently lost Ray Ray McCloud to the Falcons and Taylor returned 23 punts last season for the Bears. So Taylor can fill a job, although he's not particularly good at it and he fumbled twice in 2023.

The 49ers will be able to find a better punt returner than Taylor in the upcoming NFL Draft, and they should know that. It's possible Taylor is a mere placeholder and a campbody who eventually will get replaced by a rookie who isn't on the roster yet.

As a placeholder, Taylor is a tremendous fit, because he's friends with George Kittle and Kyle Juszczyk -- they all joined the 49ers in the same season. It might be good for morale to bring back a familiar face in the locker room. And the 49ers certainly need a morale boost, considering they had the best roster in football last season and still found a way to blow a double-digit lead in the Super Bowl and lose. And Kittle in particular has a major gripe, considering he got targeted just four times in that game. So maybe hanging out with Taylor during OTAs, minicamp and training camp will make him feel better.

But if Taylor actually makes the 53-man roster, the 49ers are completely unserious.