The reason the 49ers were interested in Willie Jackson is that despite only having one big season (the 2001 season) Jackson would have brought serious competition to the secondary receiving position. It is my belief, that he is the only receiver in free agency this off-season that would have done that for the 49ers. He is also the only receiver in free agency who would have added to the overall chemistry of the team.

While I’m not bothered that he did not sign with the 49ers, mainly because his only productive season came in a contract year, that he was asking for bigger numbers than I and the 49ers believe he deserved, and because of an extremely receiver rich draft next season; I can say that he would have been a nice addition to the 49ers under the right conditions. That he didn’t sign with the 49ers is disappointing, but not bothersome.

The current receiving market really only includes two players worth a look. Former Packer Antonio Freeman and former Bengal Darnay Scott. I believe neither of these two receivers is worth the 49ers pursuit, and I believe neither of these two receivers would have been a better signing than Willie Jackson.

Freeman is an aging receiver, who did well with the Packers. There is no doubt in my mind that Freeman can be productive in a primary role for one more season. But asking Freeman to accept less money, and to compete for a secondary role… now that’s simply a disaster. With big plays, comes a big ego, and Freeman’s ego is now bigger than the plays he makes. He’s on the down turn of his career, the point at which the 49ers are famous for letting veterans go, and his ego would just clash with that of star receiver Terrell Owens. The amount of money the 49ers would have to pay Freeman is again not worth it, in terms of what he would add to the team given the 49ers current personnel.

Scott is a different type of receiver than Freeman. He’s known for his speed, but certainly isn’t as productive in down field blocking; and because he would have to learn an entire offense over a few months, he certainly wouldn’t beat JJ Stokes for the secondary role. Scott likely wouldn’t add to the chemistry of the team, but likely wouldn’t take away from it in the same way Freeman would. Still he’d be looking for a rather sizeable pay check, and that’s something the 49ers should avoid at all costs in adding another receiver to their roster. Scott’s speed is enticing, but his game as a whole likely couldn’t compete with that of JJ Stokes.

The other reason the 49ers should avoid signing a receiver at this point is next years draft. As mentioned above, the 2003 draft is full of receiver, and great ones at that. Rather than paying money for a receiver on the down turn of their career, the 49ers should find one in next years draft and use the extra cap space this year for other areas such as depth along the offensive line, extending contracts of some of the team’s up and coming players, or save some room in the event of filling a roster space due to injury.