49ers' Jalen Hurd's Fantasy Stock After 2 TDs vs. Cowboys, Trent Taylor Injury
August 11, 2019
San Francisco 49ers rookie wide receiver Jalen Hurd snagged three passes for 31 yards and two touchdowns in his preseason debut against the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday, a 17-9 win.
The question is whether that performance translates to more opportunities for Hurd, especially in light of slot wideout Trent Taylor's foot injury.
The answer is that Hurd's fantasy football stock has clearly risen, to the point where he may be a shrewd late-round sleeper in all formats.
As Matt Barrows of The Athletic tweeted, Taylor is out for the "near future." That means Hurd "will see more action at slot receiver," per the beat writer.
Establish The Run's Evan Silva posited that Hurd has a "real shot" to be San Francisco's slot man. Hurd certainly has experience there, with Pro Football Focus' Jeff Deeney reporting that the rookie ran 96 percent of his route there at Baylor last season.
Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area provided compliments for Hurd's performance in his postgame takeaways piece:
"On Saturday, he showed his running back skills as a receiver, lining up in the slot on the left side and catching a pass from Mullens on a crossing route," Maiocco wrote. "Hurd then turned up field and flattened Cowboys safety Kavon Frazier at the goal line for a 20-yard touchdown."
Maiocco wrote on Saturday that (a) the team doesn't have a true No. 1 wideout and (b) he expected Taylor to lead the team in targets.
That was written before news of the injury, but if that prediction was to ring true, then there is target volume to be had in the 49ers' passing game. Furthermore, the lack of a No. 1 wideout now means someone can take the role down the road. Why not Hurd?
The rookie is currently listed with an average draft position of 374, per FantasyPros. If your league is drafting any time soon, consider jumping on the Hurd fantasy bandwagon before it potentially gets full.