Jay Glazer of Fox Sports recently reported that the San Francisco 49ers were working on a trade to strengthen their receiving corps, with a deal in place with the Minnesota Vikings for Jauan Jennings.
However, Jennings ultimately decided against the move, opting to remain in Minnesota rather than return to San Francisco for a second stint. The Niners were likely looking at the veteran wideout’s production and thinking he’d want to return and have a more prominent role.
Nonetheless, that didn’t happen. With Jennings not returning, former 49ers safety Donte Whitner didn’t hold back his thoughts when talking about the wideout’s decision to remain with the Vikings.
“Jauan Jennings declined a trade back to the San Francisco 49ers,” Whitner said in a Nov. 5 video from the “Grit Code Podcast.” “Good. Let him stay his a– over there in Minnesota. Keep getting your one catch per game because here’s something about the NFL that every player understands: Production equals reward, and when the production stops, those paychecks start getting questioned.
“You can’t live off what you did yesterday, buddy. This is a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately business. And if you keep putting up those numbers, eventually Minnesota’s going to cut ties with you because at some point, they’re going to realize they’re paying a wide receiver money for a guy putting up backup tight end numbers.”
Donte Whitner Confused Over Jauan Jennings’ Decision
Moreover, Whitner sounded puzzled as to why Jennings would reject the opportunity to play with Brock Purdy and stay in Minnesota, where the QB situation already has Justin Jefferson showing signs of frustration due to the inconsistent play.
“Respect what Jauan did for the 49ers,” Whitner added. “If you don’t want to come back and compete for a Super Bowl, stay your ass in Minnesota. The 49ers are trying to collect wins, not beg somebody who’s collecting one catch per week. That’s what I thought of when I saw it.
“You don’t want to play with one of the MVP-caliber quarterbacks? Stay your a– over there and watch when they cut ties with you. It was hard to get back on another roster, buddy.”
Perhaps more details will emerge as to why Jennings took this stance as of now, in Minnesota, the wideout will be catching passes from Carson Wentz as Kyler Murray is going to miss the Week 9 game against the Buffalo Bills. Only time will tell if Jennings made the right decision or if it’s one he’ll regret.
49ers’ Kyle Shanhan Confirmed Failed Jauan Jennings Trade
While speaking to the media on Nov. 4, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed the report that they were keen on the veteran wideout.
“The report was accurate, just not totally exactly detailed up,” Shanahan told reporters. “I mean, you can’t talk to other players on other teams. You’re not allowed to.
“We love Jauan. We have such a good relationship with Jauan and know him really well and we didn’t want to do it without talking to him first. So, we had to agree on some things to at least make it close enough to be able to talk to him.”
Ex-49ers Star Doesn’t Hold Back on Jauan Jennings After Failed Trade