49ers beat writer Cam Inman calls WR Jalen Hurd one of the team’s “wild cards” entering training camp. Hurd, a converted RB at 6’5, 230 pounds, buzzed during the summer of 2019 only to suffer a back fracture in August. He sustained a torn ACL roughly one year later. Still, the belief is that Hurd will “contend for the wide open #3 [WR] spot,” per Inman. We’ll see how much on-field work he gets in after working exclusively with a trainer this offseason. For now, Hurd is simply someone to monitor in deeper formats.

49ers RB Trey Sermon has "made a strong first impression, particularly as a pass-catcher out of the backfield," according to ESPN's Nick Wagoner. Sermon soaked up 1st-team reps in minicamp with RBs Jeff Wilson and Raheem Mostert sidelined with knee issues. The pass-catching comment is particularly noteworthy since Sermon arrives to the NFL with a modest 48 receptions across 4 college seasons. We'll be keeping a close eye on this 49ers backfield in training camp and preseason. Sermon has been leaving the board in the 6th round of recent FFPC best-ball drafts.

49ers HC Kyle Shanahan confirmed that QB Jimmy Garoppolo is in the driver’s seat to start Week 1. "I definitely see it as Jimmy's the starter," Shanahan said via CBS. "But if Trey's ready to compete, I have no problem with it. I don't sit there and say, 'Hey, we're not playing a rookie quarterback. We have to rest him the first year.' … I don't really make any decisions like that until I actually have an opinion on it. And that'll take to how I see him in camp. If he comes in and he's playing at a high level and we think he gives us the best chance to win, we wouldn't hesitate to do that [start him Week 1]." While Garoppolo will likely start Week 1, he’ll almost certainly turn the keys over to Lance at some point in 2021.

49ers RB Jeff Wilson will start the season on the PUP list after his surgery to repair a torn meniscus, GM John Lynch said. That means Wilson will miss at least the first 6 games of the season. And he might find playing time tough to come by after that with Trey Sermon, Raheem Mostert, Wayne Gallman and Elijah Mitchell all vying for snaps. Wilson is undraftable right now.

Asked about DE Nick Bosa on Tuesday, 49ers HC Kyle Shanahan said, "We fully expect him to be ready for training camp." Bosa tore his left ACL in Week 2, but it sounds like rehab has gone well. This is his 2nd time going through the process -- the 1st came back in high school -- and Shanahan spoke highly of Bosa's setup (away from the team). Shanahan also this week related Bosa's impact on the defense to those of Aaron Donald and Von Miller to their respective teams. So it's clear the coach is excited to get his defensive playmaker back. We'll certainly keep an eye on the potential top-5 IDP lineman throughout the summer.

49ers RB Jeff Wilson recently underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his knee, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reports. Wilson is expected to be sidelined 4 to 6 months, which keeps him out until sometime between mid-September and mid-November. He signed a fully guaranteed 1-year, $2 million deal this offseason, so Wilson's roster spot should be safe. But he's a candidate to open the season on the PUP list. We'll keep an eye on his rehab this summer, but Wilson isn't worth a pick in early fantasy drafts. His injury makes the 49ers backfield a bit less crowded, with Raheem Mostert, Wayne Gallman and rookies Trey Sermon and Elijah Mitchell now vying for snaps. The hype train is speeding down the tracks for Sermon, who's going in the 7th round of recent FFPC drafts.

The Eagles on Friday signed RB Kerryon Johnson. He slipped to just 3.3 carries and 1.2 receptions per game last season, with D'Andre Swift in the mix -- despite playing in all 16 games for the 1st time in his 3 years. Johnson joins a Philly backfield with Miles Sanders as the leader, 5th-round pick Kenneth Gainwell arriving as a receiving factor and Jordan Howard returning. We'll see exactly how Johnson fits in this summer.

The Lions are waiving RB Kerryon Johnson, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. This move doesn't come as a surprise after Detroit signed Jamaal Williams in free agency. We'd bet on Johnson finding a new team before long, with Atlanta the most obvious candidate. Johnson averaged 4.3 yards per carry and 8.3 yards per catch over 3 seasons in Detroit but averaged just 10.1 touches per game. He lost 14 games to injuries over his first 2 seasons before playing in every 2020 game -- and seeing his rushing workload crater (3.3 rushes per contest). We'll see where Johnson lands for 2021.

The 49ers have added Louisiana RB Elijah Mitchell to their backfield crowd in the 6th round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Mitchell sports impressive testing numbers, including a 4.35-second pro day 40, an 83rd-percentile vertical, a 94th-percentile broad jump and a 71st-percentile 3-cone drill. His production for the Ragin’ Cajuns was fine, but a strong O-line certainly helped his 6.2-yard rushing average. Mitchell also spent his whole college career splitting touches basically evenly with limited prospect Trey Ragas. Sophomore Chris Smith tied Mitchell for the backfield lead with 16 receptions in 2020. He'll face even stiffer competition in San Francisco, which returns Raheem Mostert, Jeff Wilson and JaMycal Hasty, added Wayne Gallman and already drafted Trey Sermon. We didn't like Mitchell as more than a late consideration in rookie drafts heading in. He doesn't look any more attractive now. Mitchell will need to fight for a spot on the 2021 roster.

The 49ers traded up to select Ohio State RB Trey Sermon with the 88th overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft. Sermon opened his college career solidly at Oklahoma, averaging 5.9 yards per rush and scoring 20 total TDs over his 1st 2 seasons. But he fell out of favor with the coaching staff there before transferring to Ohio State for his final season. Sermon spent most of 2020 splitting touches with Master Teague but closed out the year with a 29-331-2 rushing line in the Big Ten championship game win over Northwestern and then a 31-193-1 outing in the semifinal win over Clemson. Sermon brings enough size (6’0, 215), tested well athletically and put a nice blend of running skills on his college tape. There’s 3-down upside to his game, though he’s more likely headed for some level of backfield share in San Francisco alongside Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson. It’s a strong running game under HC Kyle Shanahan, though, so this is a nice landing spot.

Trey Lance completed an improbable rise to the NFL by landing with the 49ers at Pick #3 in the 2021 NFL Draft. Lance spent just 1 season as a starting QB in high school and then chose North Dakota State at the FCS level after being lightly recruited. He followed NFL backup Easton Stick there and balled out in his lone starting campaign. Lance completed 66.9% of his throws at 9.7 yards per attempt with 28 TDs and nary an INT. He led that Bison team to a 16-0 record and the FCS national title, adding 1,100 yards and 14 TDs on the ground. Lance boasts the size and willingness to be Josh Allen-like as a goal-line rusher. Also like Allen, he sports a big throwing arm. Lance started just 17 college games and might be asked to sit for a year before getting his starting shot in the pros. (Even Jimmy Kepouros, an NDSU WR, calls Lance “really raw.”) But the rushing ability alone gives Lance immediate fantasy upside whenever he does hit the field. This is a nice landing spot with a bright offensive mind in HC Kyle Shanahan and a nice group of pass-catchers in George Kittle, Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel. We’ll see whether the Niners hang on to QB Jimmy Garoppolo -- and if he can hang on to the starting job for any or all of 2021. Bet on Lance hitting the field at some point this season.

The 49ers signed WR Mohamed Sanu to a 1-year deal. The 31-year-old totaled just 17 catches across 10 outings with San Francisco and Detroit this past season. But he'd tallied 59+ grabs in each of the previous 4 years -- and even cost the Patriots a 2nd-round pick in a trade back in 2019. We'll see how much gas is left in Sanu's tank this summer. The 'Niners are thin at WR behind Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, so there's a chance for Sanu to win the #3 WR job.

The 49ers swung a massive trade for the #3 overall pick in next month's draft, sending the #12 pick, a 2021 3rd-rounder and 1st-rounders in 2022 and 2023 to the Dolphins. The 'Niners clearly have their eyes on a QB. ESPN's Adam Schefter hears that the team doesn't have 1 specific rookie in mind but is "good with the options" that will be available. That'll be some combination of BYU's Zach Wilson, Ohio State's Justin Fields and North Dakota State's Trey Lance. Schefter also reports that San Francisco "has no plans" to trade QB Jimmy Garoppolo -- but his days as the starter are clearly numbered. The Dolphins, meanwhile, are reaffirming their commitment to QB Tua Tagovailoa with this trade.

The 49ers signed restricted free-agent RB Jeff Wilson to a 1-year deal, ESPN's Field Yates reports. Wilson set career highs across the board last season and finished strong, tallying 58 carries for 319 yards (5.5 YPC) and 2 scores over the final 3 games. He also saw 13 targets during that stretch -- although he caught just 4 of them. With both Tevin Coleman and Jerick McKinnon set to hit free agency in March, it's Wilson and Raheem Mostert signed in San Francisco for 2021 right now.

The 49ers will go without DT Javon Kinlaw (knee), CB Richard Sherman (calf) and slot CB K'Waun Williams -- to go with the earlier report on LB Dre Greenlaw (calf) -- for Sunday's game against the Seahawks. In addition, S Tarvarius Moore and CB Emmanuel Moseley are questionable. We'll check on their statuses Sunday when the inactives come out (around 3 p.m. ET).

The 49ers have ruled LB Dre Greenlaw (calf) out for Sunday's game against the Seahawks. Azeez Al-Shaair looks like his playing-time replacement. No other Niners LB behind Al-Shaair, Greenlaw and Fred Warner has played more than 28 snaps on the season.

49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk suffered a high-ankle sprain in Saturday's win over the Cardinals and will miss the finale vs. the Seahawks. It ends an impressive rookie campaign that saw Aiyuk average 6.6 catches, 83 yards and .6 TDs over his final 7 games. Kendrick Bourne and Richie James will close out the season as San Francisco's top 2 WRs.

Niners HC Kyle Shanahan confirmed Thursday that TE George Kittle will play against the Cardinals on Saturday. According to multiple reports, Shanahan said Kittle might be the healthiest player on the team and that he has looked good in practice. The TE might see some limitation to his playing time, but we wouldn't bet they'd return the star to action unless they expected him to help. Kittle jumps right back in among the top TE plays for Week 16.

The San Jose Mercury News' Cam Inman believes TE George Kittle (foot) is on track to return for Saturday's game against the Cardinals. Both GM John Lynch and team doctors have given Kittle the green light. “Yes, you have to have discretion and all those things, but we’ve been very thoughtful about this, and if he plays, it’s only because he’s ready to play,” Lynch said. “He’s eager to play and we want him to play.” It sure sounds like Kittle would be returning to something close to his regular role. There might be some risk of re-injury, but Kittle would also boast as much upside as any TE outside of maybe Travis Kelce. It's worth noting that Kittle posted a 15-183-1 line in his 1st game back from injury -- albeit a different injury -- earlier this season.

49ers RB Jeff Wilson isn't listed on the Week 16 injury report. He appeared to tweak a hamstring in last week's loss to the Cowboys but is evidently good to go for Saturday's game vs. the Cardinals. With RB Raheem Mostert out with his ankle injury, Wilson is set up for a heavy workload.