Kendrick Bourne calls Trent Taylor a ‘third-down guru’ primed for an ‘amazing year’

Trent Taylor was having a pretty good training camp last year before a Jones fracture derailed his 2019 hopes. The fourth-year receiver is once again having a good training camp, and he hopes to stay healthy and make an impact on this San Francisco 49ers offense.

That would not surprise one of his fellow wideouts, Kendrick Bourne.

"Trent, he's a third-down guru. He just knows how to get open," Bourne said via Zoom on Saturday. "You don't really see him too much on the outside or anything like that. But when he comes in, and his name is called, he always seems to make the play, or he's always open."

Taylor gave fans a glimpse of his potential during his rookie year, hauling in 43 passes for 430 yards with two touchdowns and building a solid rapport with Jimmy Garoppolo upon the quarterback's arrival.

A back injury hindered his 2018 season.

Kyle Shanahan was asked on Saturday if Taylor is nearing his pre-injury form from a year ago. The head coach believes that to be the case, but he also wants to be careful not to push the receiver too hard.

"I think he's getting very close to that. It's just a matter of time," Shanahan said. "The more we practice and the more football shape he'll get into, the closer he'll be to that. He's looked pretty good to where it's also a fine line on how much we want to practice him to get to that.

"It's kind of what I'm debating with all our players. But, we know the player Trent is, and my goal is to get him healthy for the season. But I also want to give him a chance to fine-tune himself and be his best self, which only comes with reps."

Bourne was asked what the 49ers missed last season by not having Taylor out on the football field with them during their Super Bowl run.

"Just his presence," Bourne responded. "He's a guy we can rely on. That's what I truly feel about Trent. Me and him both played F, and I learned from him first. He was out there playing F, and I watched him really heavily. We were in the same class, and he just was on top of everything. You could just tell, he wanted to be a game-time player.

"He's a game-time player, practice player, and you could just feel it when he's out there. He's been making plays all of camp. I'm very proud of that dude, what he's been going through, and he's just unfazed by it.

"He's back to his old self. It's exciting to see, and he'll have an amazing year. I know it's coming."