Ellington spent the 2016 season on injured reserve following a torn hamstring suffered in a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers. He was competing for a roster spot on a 49ers team that has a lot of young talent at the position.
"Bruce had done a good job with us," 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said on Thursday. "We had a bunch of guys who were very similar in their skill set. Kind of the same type of players and we had to get some different skill sets in. I thought, give Bruce a chance to go somewhere else. He handled everything great. He's been a great person here in the short time we've been with him.
"He came back and battled from some tough injuries and gave himself a chance to go for a week, but you know we're a little too loaded at that spot. So, we wanted to get some different guys in here with some different skill sets and mix up the group a little bit."
Ellington was drafted out of South Carolina by the 49ers in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. Used primarily as a returner on special teams, where he has 1,604 return yards, he only has 19 receptions for 215 yards and two touchdowns receiving throughout his two active seasons in the league.
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