Aside from the battle at running back, the wide receiver position will likely be the most active for the San Francisco 49ers during training camp and preseason. The battle will probably carry into the regular season as well, as several viable candidates will be vying for supremacy.
Round one draftee A.J. Jenkins will be expected to contribute immediately, but only if he's able to win his battles. He's going to be up against guys like Kyle Williams and tight end Delanie Walker when it comes to playing time. What's going to be interesting is really seeing where Williams fits in all of this.
49ers fans are quick to assume that Williams does not factor into the team's plans after he royally screwed things up in the NFC Championship game, but they're quick to forget that he was considered someone with an awful lot of potential at the wide receiver position prior to that. And he still is.
But here's what Matt Maiocco has to say about Jenkins and playing time:
Jenkins will be given an opportunity to win playing time as a rookie. After all, Harbaugh is a big fan of a player who was widely viewed as a surprise first-round selection.
Jenkins has the advantage of being able to play each of the team's receiver positions. He has the combination of quickness and speed to excel in the slot position. However, he needs to work on his upper-body strength to enable him to break free from press coverage.
It should be interesting to see just how the full battle will go - with Michael Crabtree, Randy Moss, Mario Manningham, Jenkins, Ted Ginn Jr., Kyle Williams, Brett Swain, Joe Hastings, John Matthews, Chris Owusu, Nathan Palmer and Brian Tyms. That's a lot of guys vying for the roster in whatever way they possibly can. You can check out the full piece from Maiocco to get his take.