The San Francisco 49ers are preparing to face the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game. For most of the players on the roster, like third-year wide receiver Kendrick Bourne, this is their first playoff run. The 49ers are on the doorstep of the organization's seventh trip to a Super Bowl.
Bourne caught three passes for 40 yards against the Minnesota Vikings during Saturday's 27-10 win, including hauling in the team's first playoff touchdown in six years. The receiver walked away as the offense's highest-graded player (84.2), according to Pro Football Focus.
.@JimmyG_10 is looking sharp in his first #NFLPlayoffs start.@49ers have the lead! #GoNiners @BournePoly11
📺: #MINvsSF on NBC
— NFL (@NFL) January 11, 2020
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It wasn't a perfect outing, though, for the receiver who has shown significant improvement this season and has become a clutch target for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. In addition to his three receptions, Bourne had a drop on what was perceived to be a catchable ball.
Bourne joined KNBR on Tuesday and was asked by Greg Papa about his in-game consistency. How does the young wideout often come up with the more difficult catches, yet lets some easier ones fall to the ground?
"I always say, just not really focused in," Bourne responded on the Papa and Lund show. "The 3rd-and-4 that I dropped, I definitely feel like I was just peeking at the defender, trying to anticipate the hit and stuff like that. So, that's stuff that I can work on when I'm going across the middle, just focusing on the ball, not worrying about the hit, knowing I'm going to get hit.
"And I feel like, you said, the acrobatic ones, just knowing I need to make it. I just feel like the pressure of the third-down or whatever, I just feel like it's more pressure on me, so I just — I don't know — I answer the pressure pretty well.
"Even Jimmy just putting the ball in the area that it needs to be, and [me] just making the play, I don't care where it's at, I need to make the catch. That's what my job is. I get paid to make the tough catches. That's really what I've got to do.
"Even thinking about those plays, I really want them back because I don't get a lot of [opportunities], so I just got to make the ones that come."
Bourne goes on to say that sometimes his overconfidence also contributes to dropping some easier passes. He also discusses his dance moves, having fun on the football field, learning from veteran receiver Emmanuel Sanders, and more.
You can listen to the entire conversation with Bourne below.
