Your daily San Francisco 49ers news for Sunday, May 11th, 2025
Kubiak states Jennings embraces 49ers No. 1 receiver mentality
“Yeah, I think, if you ask Jauan, he says ‘I’m number one.’ And that’s his mindset, and that’s why we love Jauan,” Kubiak said. “That’s how he sees himself. He sees himself as a dominant player. I think you guys all saw last year when he got more chances, he played really, really well. So really fired up about Jauan.”
Run it back: 49ers hope Junior Bergen re-creates the magic he made at Montana (paywall
“The 49ers drafted Bergen after receiving strong pre-draft intel. Special teams coordinator Brant Boyer learned about Bergen’s tireless work ethic through his son, Brayton, who is a kicker at Montana. And assistant special teams coach Colt Anderson knew he could trust Hauck, who was his head coach at Montana from 2004-08.
Brant Boyer, who went to Montana to put Bergen through a workout before the draft, said Bergen possesses a rare blend of intangibles and elite traits.
“If you want to say he has the ‘it factor,’ I think he does,” Boyer said.
Bergen was effective as a kickoff returner, averaging 23.9 yards on 41 runbacks, but he was drafted because he’s so adept at a more difficult skill. It’s harder to safely secure a punt than a kickoff, and it’s more challenging to weave through traffic because defenders are closer when the ball is fielded.
Hauck, a special teams coordinator at Colorado, Washington and San Diego State who handles those duties for the Grizzlies, quickly realized Bergen had the gift. At Montana, Hauck has also coached Marc Mariani, a seventh-round pick of the Titans in 2010 who made the Pro Bowl as a rookie as a return specialist.
Hauck said he heard the same thing when Bergen and Mariani fielded punts: the sound of silence.
“I like listening to the ball hit their hands,” Hauck said. “If it’s silent when the ball drops out of the sky, they have soft hands. It’s not easy.”
Bergen was a four-sport athlete at Billings (Mont.) High, also taking part in basketball, baseball and wrestling, and his background helped develop spatial awareness, creating a “feel” he has during punt returns which includes an ability to sense openings before they develop.
“Some people have a unique skill to set up blockers, and I always tell our return teams that the returner is the best blocker that you’ve got,” Boyer said. “Some people know how to set them up. Listen, he’s got it.”
How a promise between brothers propelled 49ers’ third-round pick Nick Martin to NFL dream (paywall)
“It wasn’t just another school day for Nick Martin at Pleasant Grove High. His older brother, Chauncey, would receive his prison sentence on Nov. 20, 2019. Nick got off school early to attend the hearing. Their dad, Michael, said Nick needed to see for himself how quickly life’s blessings can be taken back…..Together, the Martin brothers dreamt about a future in football. Neither ever imagined the nightmare in which one would watch the other be escorted into a courtroom in cuffs. Nick felt his heart drop. Tears followed when the sentence was read. Chauncey spent the next 26 months behind bars, having realized how much he let down the person who wanted to win a Texas 4A Division II State Championship like he had, who wanted to go Division I like he did, who wanted to make the NFL like they both planned to do.
As Nick and the rest of his family approached the exits, Chauncey called out to him and said, “You got to do it for me now,” to which Nick responded with a brother’s promise that gave each of them the strength to carry on: “I got you, big bro.”