Decisions, decisions. They are looming for the San Francisco 49ers. There will be some difficult decisions when it comes to the team's inexperienced but potentially talented wide receiver group.
Two receivers who are certain to make the 53-man roster on Saturday are rookies Deebo Samuel and Jalen Hurd, who were drafted in the second and third rounds, respectively. Both bring different things to the table, and both are capable of impacting a game, as put on display in the 49ers' preseason opener against the Dallas Cowboys on August 10.
Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, who has only played in eight games with the 49ers, is still trying to build chemistry with his receivers. He took part in a KNBR interview on Tuesday, which was aired on Wednesday, and discussed that process with his offensive teammates.
"There's a trust factor between quarterback and whether it's receiver, tight end, running back, whoever is catching the ball," Garoppolo said on the "Tolbert, Krueger and Brooks" show. "The more you try those things, you see who's going to make the play for you in the crucial situation."
Garoppolo is still trying to feel out what Samuel and Hurd can do, but the early indication is that the two rookies can be effective weapons for the quarterback.
"They're both a little different types of receivers between the two of them," Garoppolo said. "But both, if you put them in spots to be successful, they're going to make you look good as a quarterback, and you love having that. Just their run-after-catch ability, how they attack the ball. They don't let the ball get into their body. They use their hands. Those are all traits that you don't usually see out of rookies, but it's very encouraging.
"They're both so raw right now, which is good and bad, you know? But it's exciting because there's so much more room for them to grow."
The 49ers open the regular season on the road against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on September 8. Hurd has been dealing with back problems during the preseason and head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked this week if the rookie wideout is in any danger of missing Week 1.
"I wouldn't have thought that a week ago, but it's still lingering," Shanahan responded. "It's definitely legit, so we're going to rest it here again this whole week, and then we'll probably reassess it on Monday and see where he's at."
You can listen to the entire interview with Garoppolo below.