Jalen Hurd was back in the mix with 49ers wide receivers Monday as they began their offseason program – in a virtual setting.
He bore the username “iPadPlayer14” in the receivers’ Zoom, video-conference room.
On the field, Hurd wore No. 17 for all of two exhibitions last August, then a back fracture wiped out his rookie season.
“We’re ramping him up. We are very optimistic,” general manager John Lynch said Sunday. “I don’t want to be overly optimistic, because last year we saw some progress and then we had some setbacks.
“So, I’ll let that thing continue to take its place. He’s out, he’s running. He’s doing really well and we’re excited by that.”
Hurd remains the 49ers’ greatest unknown, all due respect to the incoming rookies and the tectonic shift of left tackles from Joe Staley to Trent Williams.
Most fans, however, are convinced he is the answer to any shortcomings in the passing game, convinced merely by his two-touchdown debut against the Dallas Cowboys in last year’s exhibition opener.
“Jalen’s 14 days that we’ve seen him (last August) were lights out,” Lynch said. “The problem is we’ve only seen him for 14 days. Jalen knows full well that he needs to work his tail off, so that he can get back and be a contributor and try to earn opportunities to be a contributor for our team moving forward.
“We love his skill set. We love his mindset. Now it’s time to put it all to work.”
Hurd’s rehabilitation has allowed him to continue treatment at the 49ers’ facility, which has been closed “with limited exceptions” since mid-March because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Santa Clara County’s shelter-in-place was extended Monday through at least May.
“He’s doing really well,” Lynch said. “One of the benefits is that the rehab players have been able to be around the facility. They’ve been granted permission by the league. We take great precaution with all those things but Jalen is doing really well. He is cleared.”
Hurd’s rookie season got short-circuited because of a stress fracture in his lower back. He rested it a few weeks, made a cameo on the practice field, then got placed on injured reserve Oct. 3.
Some three weeks later, the 49ers traded for Emmanuel Sanders and got the receiving boost needed for their Super Bowl run. Rookie Deebo Samuel, a second-round pick, also came on strong, all while rookie classmate Hurd, a third-rounder, rehabilitated his back.
The 49ers invested even more equity in receivers this past draft, selecting Brandon Aiyuk in the first round and Jauan Jennings in the seventh round.
Aiyuk is a Reno native who played at Sierra College and Arizona State. Jennings hails from Tennessee, where Hurd started his college career as a running back before transferring to Baylor.
Hurd ran for 2,635 yards and 20 touchdowns in his three season at Tennessee while also totaling 67 receptions from 2014-16. Upon switching full-time to a wide receiver at Baylor, he had 69 receptions in 2018.
Against the Cowboys in his 49ers exhibition debut, he totaled three catches for 31 yards and a touchdown. Next exhibition, he played just 15 snaps at Denver, then was done for 2019.
Now that the 2020 roster is initially configured, Hurd will have added competition once it is safe to open training camp or the season. The 49ers likely will keep only six wide receivers, and perhaps only three spots are available beyond Samuel, Aiyuk and Kendrick Bourne. Hurd is among a group that also includes Trent Taylor, Travis Benjamin, Richie James Jr. and Jennings, their seventh-round draft pick.
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