The San Francisco 49ers have done well in terms of shoring up a wide receiver room that was looking very thin coming into free agency. They snagged Mike Evans, the veteran six-time Pro Bowler who has more 1,000 receiving yard seasons in NFL history than anyone not named Jerry Rice. They also brought in Christian Kirk, a younger veteran wideout who has been moderately productive in eight prior seasons, to give quarterback Brock Purdy another weapon.
But the 49ers still need some more help at that position. Brandon Aiyuk, who led them in catches and receiving yards in 2023 before tearing his ACL in 2024, is on his way out, and Ricky Pearsall, a first-round draft pick in 2024, has shown promise but hasn’t put it all together. Future Hall of Fame tight end George Kittle tore his Achilles in the wild-card round of the playoffs, and while his rehab is going well, it isn’t a certainty that he will be the same player again.
The team will have the No. 27 pick in next month’s draft, and it will be interesting to see if they aim for a wideout or perhaps some pass-rushing help with that pick. On Monday, they had a pre-draft visit with Denzel Boston, a University of Washington wide receiver, per Field Yates of ESPN.
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There are those who feel Boston would be a great pick for San Francisco in the first round, including Matt Barrows, a Niners beat writer for The Athletic.
“Boston would be a near no brainer if he were still there at No. 27, in my opinion,” Barrows wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “He’s big, physical, blocks and would be a strong understudy to Mike Evans at the X spot.”
Boston is an intriguing, potential-laden prospect
Boston, who grew up in Pierce County just minutes south of Seattle, got only spot duty during his first two seasons with the Huskies while playing behind studs such as Rome Odunze. But he broke out as a junior in 2024 with 63 catches, 834 yards and nine touchdowns, and last year, he put up 881 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns.
At 6-foot-4 and roughly 210 pounds, he has the type of size that could make him an outstanding target in red zone situations. He lacks elite top-end speed, but he has great hands and can make contested catches, and scouts seem to love his competitive spirit.
Some scouts and experts have even gone as far as to compare him to Puka Nacua, the Los Angeles Rams’ star wideout who was a fifth-round choice in 2023. Per NFL.com, one NFC scouting director went as far as to say this about Boston: “I don’t think speed concerns are valid. Anyway, you don’t have to be fast when you are as good as he is when guarded.”
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It’s time for the 49ers to replenish
For the last couple of years or so, critics have said that the 49ers’ core is aging and that their Super Bowl window has closed. That may not literally be true, but it is true that their wide receiver room has suffered lots of upheaval during that time, especially since Aiyuk suffered his injury in October 2024.
Jauan Jennings has stepped up his production over the last two years, but he’s a free agent, and there is considerable doubt that he will stay in the Bay. Kittle and Evans are both 32 years of age, and no one knows what Pearsall, who showed glimpses of promise this past season, will become.
It is time for San Francisco to draft a legitimate wide receiver threat. The storied franchise has been to the Super Bowl twice in the previous seven seasons, only to lose both times despite holding double-digit leads over the Kansas City Chiefs. It hasn’t won the Vince Lombardi Trophy since the 1994 season, and members of Niners Faithful are starving for the organization’s sixth world championship.
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