WR Jordan Watkins delivers in his biggest opportunity yet for 49ers

It's been a long time coming for wide receiver Jordan Watkins, but on Sunday he finally got his chance to step into the spotlight for the San Francisco 49ers.

And when his chances came, he delivered.

Watkins joined the 49ers as a fourth-round selection in the 2025 NFL Draft after catching 185 passes for 2,682 yards and seven touchdowns over the course of five college seasons at the University of Louisville and Ole Miss. But he played in only four games as a rookie, catching two passes for 26 yards, and then was inactive for the first two games of the 2026 season.

With the 49ers down a number of players due to injury at wide receiver, Watkins was active in the 49ers' third game of the season, a 36-30 win over the Arizona Cardinals. He delivered two key catches for 60 yards, both of which helped lead to points in a game where yet another receiver came up injured when veteran Mike Evans left the game with a rib injury.

Watkins' first catch came on a 3rd-and-12 late in the first quarter. The catch went for 26 yards and kept a drive alive that ended in a 49ers touchdown and a 14-0 lead.

The second catch came right before halftime. The 49ers held a 14-6 lead after a Cardinals field goal, and with 17 seconds on the clock, it was safe to assume they wouldn't add any additional points before the second quarter came to an end. But Watkins got open for a 34-yard catch, which set up a field goal to give the 49ers a 17-6 lead as time expired in the half.

Those plays surely added to the trust the 49ers have in Watkins, who could be called upon to do more in the near future due to the injuries to Evans and Demarcus Robinson, who was recently placed on injured reserve with a high ankle sprain.

"I was really pumped for Watkins," head coach Kyle Shanahan said after the win. "That was such a big seam route that he ran on third down. You know, and it almost looked like he was going to break those tackles and score. I thought he looked real impressive on it. And then at the end of the second quarter, he was the reason we got three points there on that 59-yard field goal right before the half."

Watkins told reporters Sunday that he was not content with just being inactive on game days and approached Shanahan to find out what he could do to play. Shanahan gave him the chance he was waiting for on Sunday, and he made the most of it.

"I'm a competitor at heart. I'm always going to compete," Watkins said. "To be on the sidelines in sweats, to me that's not being able to compete and help my brothers win football games. So I just went up to Kyle and I asked him straight up, 'What can I do to get on the field? What can I do to be active?' because I just want to play ball at the end of the day. I'm a football player. He kind of just let me know what it was. Maybe it was a special teams thing, it wasn't really a receiver thing. And I think he said that earlier in the week. To have him have that trust in me to go out and make some plays today, it was great."

Watkins earned some praise from his teammates Sunday, who have watched him work throughout the year during offseason workouts and in the preseason. Running back Christian McCaffrey and tight end George Kittle told reporters Watkins deserved his opportunities after doing what he needed to do in recent months.

"He's great, man. He's been great," McCaffrey said. "He's another guy who when his number's called, he just shows up. He'll be a guy that'll continue to get better, continue to help us. He's got great speed, great hands, runs great routes. On this team, especially in this offense, you get to learn from guys like Mike Evans. You get to learn from guys like (Demarcus Robinson) who have played so many games. When the young guys get to be in a room like that, it's such an advantage for them because when their number is called, they can step up and make plays like he did."

Kittle said, "I love Jordan Watkins ... He practices his tail off. He didn't get a lot of ops last year. And for him to be consistently working hard and finally take advantage of his opportunities, it always warms my heart."

Watkins gave some credit on his catches to the offseason work he put in with quarterback Brock Purdy. The two of them were among the players to work out in Nashville, which is where a number of 49ers have done some offseason training in recent years at the home of George Kittle.

"I think that goes back into the offseason as well whenever we were down in Tennessee," Watkins said. "To have him trust me like that, to be able to put it on the line, is huge."

Watkins also gave a nod to Evans, who has been doing his part to help since joining the 49ers in March.

"Mike Evans has been great," Watkins said. "He's always trying to coach me and trying to give me as much knowledge as possible. It's been great having him around. Anytime that he sees something I could have done differently on a route in practice, he's the first person to come over and be like, 'Hey, if I were you, I'd do this, I'd do that.' So to have his knowledge and have him as a resource has been great."

With Evans out of the game, the 49ers were down to Watkins, Deebo Samuel, Jacob Cowing, and KhaDarel Hodge at wide receiver during the second half on Sunday. That's a far cry from what the wide receiver unit was originally expected to look like. But with Robinson last week joining Ricky Pearsall (out for the year with a knee injury), rookie and second-round draft pick De'Zhaun Stribling (ankle), and veteran Christian Kirk (calf) as wide receivers who will miss extended time, and now Evans carrying an uncertain status, more opportunities could come Watkins' way in the near future.

"He's been doing a good job all season," Kittle said. "From training camp, OTAs, I think he's been doing a good job. Young players just need to find that consistency, and I think he found that consistency. Once he found that consistency, Kyle trusts you to put you on the field, and the opportunities he got, he took advantage of them."

More info on: Jacob Cowing, Mike Evans, Christian Kirk, George Kittle, Christian McCaffrey, Ricky Pearsall, Brock Purdy, Demarcus Robinson, Deebo Samuel, De'Zhaun Stribling, Jordan Watkins