What's Jauan Jennings 49ers Future as Contract, Franchise Tag Looms amid Trade Rumors?

After some offseason contract drama that has quieted down since the start of the regular season, Jauan Jennings' future with the San Francisco 49ers is going to become a hot topic of conversation again soon.

Per ESPN's Nick Wagoner, the 49ers "won't" use the franchise tag on Jennings and are "unlikely" to give him a lucrative long-term deal as long as they still have Brandon Aiyuk's contract on their books.

San Francisco restructured Jennings' contract right before the start of the regular season to add $3 million in play-time incentives for 2025. The deal came together after he requested a trade due to unhappiness with his contract.

It was notable that the 49ers opted not to add time to Jennings' contract, which expires after this season. Their post-2025 receiver depth chart is unclear at this point.

Ricky Pearsall has two more guaranteed years on his rookie deal, plus the fifth-year option for 2028. Aiyuk, Demarcus Robinson, Jordan Watkins and Jacob Cowing are the other wideouts under contract through at least 2026.

The Aiyuk situation is one that is hovering over a lot of things in the Bay Area looking ahead to the offseason.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan said Aiyuk, who is still on the physically unable to perform list, hasn't been cleared to practice and remains "week-to-week" after suffering a torn ACL and MCL in a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 7 last season.

Moving on from Aiyuk's contract would be very difficult. The 49ers won't save anything if they release him, with a cap charge of just under $20 million next season with a post-June 1 designation.

A post-June 1 trade would save the Niners just over $7 million against the 2026 cap, but it's hard to fathom another team taking his contract with base salaries of $27 million in 2027 and $29 million in 2028 if he hasn't played since October 2024.

Jennings hasn't been as effective this season as he was in his breakout 2024 campaign, but he remains a go-to target in key situations regardless of who is at quarterback for the 49ers. He has 23 catches that have gone for first downs out of 31 total receptions.

A seventh-round pick in the 2020 draft, Jennings entered the NFL as an older prospect and will be 29 going into next season. He's a player who could age well since his game isn't predicated on speed.

The 49ers figure to be in the receiver market even if they keep Jennings, but being able to bring him back would make it less of a priority than if he leaves as a free agent.