49ers receiver James aims to build off career night
A week ago, the 49ers didn’t have a wide receiver who had caught a pass of 40plus yards this season.
On Thursday, Richie James had receptions of 47, 43 and 41 yards.
A week ago, only four 49ers since 1967 had at least nine catches and 184 receiving yards in a game.
On Thursday, James became the fifth, joining Jerry Rice, Terrell Owens, John Taylor and Anquan Boldin.
Yes, James entered Thursday’s 3417 loss to the Packers as an injuryprone seventhround pick in 2018 with no catches in 2020, but he exited as a player who inspired an obvious question: Why hasn’t he been playing more?
With the 49ers playing without their top three wide receivers, James played 51 snaps and had nine catches for 184 yards, including a 41yard touchdown reception.
“We definitely had to tighten up,” James said of the ragtag widereceiver corps. “You could feel there was a little pressure in the room, like we’ve got to step up the most out of the ( team) because they’re looking at us like we’re the weak link.”
James did his part. He became the first NFL player with three catches of 40plus yards in a game since 2017 ( Kansas City wide receiver Tyreek Hill) and the first 49er to do since Rice in 1995.
“We’ve got a lot of confidence in Richie,” head coach Kyle Shanahan said. “… I kind of expected him to do what he did because he is that type of player.”
So why hasn’t Shanahan played James more? This season, it’s because James has rarely been healthy. He missed training camp because of a broken wrist he suffered in June, then suffered a hamstring injury in the season opener that sidelined him for four games. He returned and played in a win over the Rams before suffering an ankle injury the next week in a victory at New England that forced him to miss another game.
Last week, in his return against the Packers, James estimated he was 95% healed from his ankle issue that had earned him a “questionable” designation before kickoff. However, there was no question whom quarterback Nick Mullens trusted the most throughout the game: Mullens targeted James with 13 of his 35 passes, eight more than any other player.
“Richie’s just a great football player,” Mullens said. “I’ve thought he’s a really good football player since he’s been here, and he got his opportunities.”
James was an unquestioned bright spot in an ugly loss. However, it’s premature to say he’ll now earn significant playing time after he had 15 receptions in 32 career games before Thursday.
For starters, his performance against the Packers should be placed in proper perspective. James did most of his damage in garbage time, when Green Bay’s top cornerback, Jaire Alexander, was out with a concussion; James had five catches for 112 yards and a touchdown after the Packers took a 313 lead with two minutes left in the third quarter.
In addition, there is the question of whether James could hold up if given a significant workload after his durability was a reason he slipped to the seventh round two years ago.
At Middle Tennessee State, he ranked third in the nation in receptions in 2015 ( 107) and 2016 ( 105), but his final season ended after five games because of the second broken collarbone of his career. James, 5foot9 and 185 pounds, was the second lightest among the 44 wide receivers at the 2018 combine, and he had the fewest reps ( six) of 225 pounds on the bench press among the 34 wideouts who lifted.
Can James shoulder a bigger load? He might have another opportunity to do so Sunday at New Orleans. Of the 49ers’ top three wideouts, Brandon Aiyuk will be back, but Deebo Samuel’s status is unclear because of a hamstring injury and the 49ers placed Kendrick Bourne on the reserve/ COVID19 list Monday.
“I’ve just got to take advantage of those opportunities,” James said after Thursday’s loss, “and I did really well today.”