San Francisco 49ers: 5 offseason needs in 2020

2. Wide Receiver

San Francisco is in an interesting position at wide receiver. The Niners have plenty of young talent at the position but it would be near negligence not to address it given the depth of options on offer in the draft.

Deebo Samuel should continue to flourish as the jack of all trades in the Niners’ passing attack, while Kendrick Bourne has emerged as an extremely reliable target on third down and in the red zone.

Beyond that pair, however, there are plenty of question-marks. Emmanuel Sanders is an unrestricted free agent and the 49ers may struggle to achieve their apparent goal of bringing him back.

Dante Pettis was lightly used in 2019 after excelling down the stretch as a rookie in 2018. Jalen Hurd did not play a snap in his first year due to a back injury and Trent Taylor will enter 2020 having endured several surgeries on his foot.

Richie James’ experience as an NFL receiver has been limited to 24 targets in two seasons while Marquise Goodwin is an obvious cap casualty candidate with most of his 2019 lost to injury.

Along with Samuel, it is likely Taylor, Hurd, and James will be given the chance to play in the slot. Yet, even if Sanders were to be re-signed, the 49ers would still lack a boundary receiver with the mix of size and speed that all teams crave.

Were Goodwin to be let go, a wideout with the ability to take the top off the defense would become a requirement. Regardless of what type of receiver they pursue, it is clear the 49ers cannot go into 2020 without providing Jimmy Garoppolo with more options at wideout.