The San Francisco 49ers are set at the top of their tight end depth chart with All-Pro George Kittle, but it doesn’t hurt to have some depth behind him. The 49ers added a former Pro Bowler to the mix on Monday, agreeing to terms with Jordan Reed.
It’s a one-year deal that’s packed with incentives, giving Reed a chance to revive his career after several injury-riddled seasons. He hasn’t played a regular-season snap since 2018 and has only played more than 12 games once in his career (2015).
Reed is best known for his receiving ability at tight end, and as long as he’s healthy, he gives the 49ers yet another dynamic playmaker at the position. Here’s what we wrote last month about the idea of Reed signing with San Francisco.
The 49ers run multiple tight end sets roughly 32 percent of the time according to Sharp Football Stats. That gives Reed an opportunity to make an impact while also limiting his total number of snaps. Rather than playing upwards of 70 percent of the offensive snaps, Reed could settle in somewhere closer to 20 or 30. His responsibilities as a run blocker could also be limited by both Dwelley and Woerner, who’re probably better served in those roles. Reed can add a second, dynamic pass catching element in multi-tight end packages that San Francisco hasn’t had during Shanahan’s tenure.
Reed isn’t guaranteed a spot on the 53-man roster, but at least the 49ers will have a chance to evaluate him in camp before final cuts are made.
In his career since 2013, Reed has 329 receptions for 3,371 yards and 24 touchdowns.
