The San Francisco 49ers, despite injury issues and other distractions at the position, still have some tough calls to make at wide receiver.
The Athletic’s Vic Tafur singled out the most “difficult decision” for the 49ers on the 53-man roster as who their wide receivers will be, and specifically with free-agent signee KhaDarel Hodge — a former special teams Pro Bowler who could provide depth in 2 facets of the game.
In Tafur’s 53-man roster projection, Hodge ends up on the outside looking in with the 49ers keeping Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel, De’Zhaun Stribling, Jordan Watkins, Demarcus Robinson, and Christian Kirk.
The 49ers signed Hodge to a 1-year contract on August 5.
“I was trying to find a spot for Hodge, a favorite of former Falcons head coach and current Niners defensive coordinator Raheem Morris,” Tafur wrote on August 18. “He is very good on special teams and a physical receiver. But I wound up cutting him and Cowing, the speedster whom it seems the 49ers have been waiting on forever. The 49ers roll with two vets — Robinson has been too good in camp, and Purdy loves him, while Kirk has been out with a calf injury, and it seems like the staff told him to take his time coming back.”
Small-College Beginnings to Lengthy NFL Career
Hodge, 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds, began his college career as a quarterback at Alcorn State in 2013 but left after a redshirt year to spend 1 season at Hinds Community College, where he switched positions to wide receiver.
From there, Hodge played 3 seasons at HBCU Prairie View A&M, where he earned All-SWAC honors as a senior in 2017 with 48 receptions for 844 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Hodge went undrafted in 2018 — his 4.58-second 40-yard dash time is considered slow for NFL wide receivers — but caught on with the Los Angeles Rams as an undrafted free agent, and still played 14 regular-season games and played in a Super Bowl loss to the New England Patriots.
From there, Hodge spent 2 seasons with the Cleveland Browns and 1 season with the Detroit Lions before finding a more permanent home with the Atlanta Falcons, where he spent 5 seasons from 2022 to 2025, including his lone Pro Bowl nod.
While Hodge has never put up big numbers catching passes, teams have found him darn near impossible to keep off the field in some capacity — he’s played in 118 career games and played in every regular-season game from 2021 to 2024.
49ers Dealing With Major Setback at Wide Receiver
The 49ers were dealt a major setback at wide receiver when news broke on August 1 that 2024 1st-round pick Ricky Pearsall would need season-ending knee surgery.
In response, San Francisco moved quickly to bring back former NFL All-Pro wide receiver Deebo Samuel just 1 year after they traded him to the Washington Commanders, signing him to a 1-year, $4.1 million contract the same day Pearsall’s surgery was announced — a deal that could be worth up to $7 million with incentives.
“Reunion: Free agent WR Deebo Samuel is signing back with the 49ers, sources say,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport wrote on his official X account on August 1. “The former Commanders and SF pass-catcher returns where it all began. From 2019-2024, Deebo Samuel became a star in SF with Kyle Shanahan’s offense. Now, after a year in Washington, he’s back.”
49ers Facing ‘Difficult Decision’ With Pro Bowl Wide Receiver