Watkins 4.37 40 was on full display during his collegiate career
Unless you’re a diehard football fan and watch the SEC weekly, it’s unlikely that you know who Jordan Watkins is. Watkins was approaching Van Wil der status, as he’d been in college since 2020. Back then, he was a scrawny freshman at Louisville, primarily used on special teams.
Watkins saw more playing time in 2021, including time as a punt returner at Louisville. He caught 35 passes for 536 yards and four touchdowns before transferring to Ole Miss. Watkins spent the next two seasons returning punts and covering kicks. He was sprinkled into the Rebels’ offense in Year 1, catching 40 passes on 54 targets for 449 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
It wasn’t until 2023 that Watkins became a fixture at wide receiver. His numbers spiked across the board. Watkins was targeted 74 times, caught 53 passes for 741 yards, and saw at least six targets in seven games. Watkins returned a punt for a touchdown in the first game of the season, setting the tone for the season.
Watkins’s role on special teams diminished during his final season. He’d played at least 50 snaps in the previous four years, but that number fell to 12 in 2024. Watkins had six fewer targets in 2024 but still had a career year as a receiver with 906 yards on 18.5 yards per reception, including nine touchdowns.
How Watkins was used likely attracted the 49ers to him. Running a 4.37 40-yard dash doesn’t hurt. Neither does catching 72 percent of your passes. Watkins’s speed was on full display, as he had five touchdowns of at least 50 yards. Watkins also caught 23 passes of 20+ yards during his collegiate career. The ability to win down the field is evident.
Last weekend, Kyle Shanahan was asked what he saw in Watkins and whether he was a good fit for the 49ers offense:
“Love his speed. First thing you notice when you see a guy for the first time, you look at his 40 time, then you watch his routes at the Combine. I thought he was one of the better route runners at the Combine, just with natural receiver skills and everything. You watch his hands, he was our best graded-out guy going through the gauntlet and stuff with just true natural hands. Watched his one-on-ones at the Senior Bowl and then to how he played at Ole Miss, talking to [Mississippi head coach] Lane [Kiffin], the whole package. We love the guy. Think he’s got a great skillset and needed to add him to the group.”
I’m always interested in how a player is used by an offensive guru like Lane Kiffin. Against Georgia, Watkins lined up at tight end and in the backfield in the first quarter of the game:
Whenever Kiffin wanted to dial up an explosive play or a double move, it was Watkins, second-round wide receiver Tre Harris, who was the beneficiary of a big play. That tells me Kiffin trusts Watkins because he understands where to be, can get open, and is trustworthy.
When Watkins visited Santa Clara in April, he said he was told, “It’s going to be tough. It’s going to be hard to be able to work my way up onto the field as a rookie.”
That quote led some fans to believe the Niners should have used the pick they did on Watkins on another position, such as offensive line — as if the same wouldn’t have been true for any other Day 3 rookie.
Inevitably, blocking came up. Watkins believes there are parallels to what he did at Ole Miss and what he’ll do in the 49ers offense, including when it comes to blocking:
“Yeah, [Mississippi head] coach [Lane] Kiffin, he emphasizes blocking a lot. I think there’s a lot of similarities between coach Kiffin’s offense and the way coach Shanahan does things. They like to get, I guess, down and dirty a little bit with their receivers, whether we’re blocking defensive ends or cracking linebackers. So, there’s a lot of similarity between how we did it at Ole Miss and how coach Shanahan runs his system.”
Watkins said members of the coaching staff had him break down his film and grade himself as a blocker.
Ultimately, it will come down to how quickly Watkins can transition to being a professional. If that means seeing the field as a returner, being the occasional “shot play” receiver, or the gadget player, it sounds like Watkins is willing to do whatever to get on the field. He has the speed and experience in multiple roles, so the odds aren’t against Watkins to play as a rookie.