Jauan Jennings Bio
Bennie Jauan Jennings is an American professional football wide receiver currently playing for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He rose to prominence as a seventh-round draft pick of the San Francisco 49ers in the 2020 NFL draft, where he developed into a reliable possession receiver and helped the franchise reach the Super Bowl. After spending his first five professional seasons in San Francisco, Jennings signed with the Minnesota Vikings as a free agent in May 2026. He is also a Super Bowl LVIII champion, having been part of the 49ers roster that advanced to the league’s biggest stage in February 2024.
Early Life and Background
Bennie Jauan Jennings was born on July 10, 1997, in Cowan, Tennessee, a small community in Franklin County in the middle portion of the state. He grew up in nearby Murfreesboro, Tennessee, where he attended Blackman High School, one of the more prominent football programs in the mid-state region. Listed at 6 feet 3 inches and 212 pounds, Jennings had the build of a future college receiver even as a teenager.
At Blackman, Jennings lined up at quarterback, a position that gave him a broad view of offensive concepts and a feel for throwing lanes and timing. That background later served him well at the next level, where he has executed trick plays involving passes of his own. A four-star recruit coming out of high school, Jennings drew attention from multiple college programs and ultimately committed to the University of Tennessee, choosing to stay in his home state to play for the Volunteers.
Path to American Football
Jennings arrived at the University of Tennessee in 2015 and spent five seasons in Knoxville, playing under head coaches Butch Jones and later Jeremy Pruitt. Although he was recruited as a quarterback, the Tennessee staff moved him to wide receiver, where his size, catch radius, and competitive temperament translated quickly. The position change turned out to be the foundation of his professional career.
He became an immediate contributor in his freshman season, recording three receptions for 56 yards in his debut against Bowling Green. By his sophomore year, Jennings was a featured piece of the Volunteers’ passing game, highlighted by a 43-yard Hail Mary catch from Joshua Dobbs that beat rival Georgia. After a wrist injury limited him in 2017, he returned in 2018 and delivered a strong senior season in 2019 with 59 receptions for 969 yards and eight touchdowns, finishing his college career with 146 receptions for 2,153 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Jauan Jennings Career
Early Career (2020–2021)
Jennings was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the seventh round, 217th overall, of the 2020 NFL draft. He was waived at the end of training camp but was signed to the practice squad the next day and later spent time on the practice squad/injured list. He signed a reserve/future contract in January 2021, setting the stage for his first full active season.
Over the 2021 season, Jennings worked his way into the 49ers’ offensive rotation as their third wide receiver. He scored his first NFL touchdown in Week 2 against the Philadelphia Eagles and finished the year strongly, recording 16 receptions for 212 yards and three touchdowns over the final five weeks, including a six-catch, 94-yard, two-touchdown performance in a must-win Week 18 game against the Los Angeles Rams. He continued producing in the playoffs, recording at least one reception in each postseason round as San Francisco reached the NFC Championship Game.
San Francisco 49ers Tenure (2020–2025)
In the 2022 season, Jennings appeared in 16 games, starting four, and finished with 35 receptions for 416 yards and a touchdown. The 49ers placed an exclusive-rights tender on him in February 2023, which he signed in April, and in the 2023 season he appeared in 13 games with two starts, recording 19 receptions for 265 yards and one touchdown. That postseason run included a memorable Super Bowl LVIII performance against the Kansas City Chiefs, where he caught four of five targets for 42 yards and a touchdown, and also threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Christian McCaffrey on a trick play. That made him only the second player in Super Bowl history to throw for a touchdown and catch a touchdown in the same game, joining Nick Foles.
On May 29, 2024, Jennings signed a two-year, $15.4 million contract extension with the 49ers. With several San Francisco pass catchers sidelined, he emerged as the team’s leading wide receiver in 2024, finishing with career highs of 77 receptions for 975 yards and six touchdowns. He was on track for his first 1,000-yard season before being ejected midway through a Week 18 game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Heading into the 2025 season, the final year of that contract, Jennings requested a trade after the two sides failed to agree on an extension. 49ers general manager John Lynch announced in August 2025 that the team would not trade him, and the two sides later agreed to a contract restructure that raised the ceiling of his 2025 salary to $10.5 million with $3 million in play-time incentives. He finished the 2025 season with 55 receptions for 643 yards and nine touchdowns, and in a Wild Card Round win over the Philadelphia Eagles, he threw another touchdown pass to Christian McCaffrey, becoming the first wide receiver in NFL history with multiple passing touchdowns in a playoff career.
Minnesota Vikings Era (2026–Present)
On May 7, 2026, Jennings signed a one-year contract worth up to $13 million with the Minnesota Vikings, ending his five-season run in San Francisco. The move paired him with a Minnesota offense looking to add a physical, reliable target on the perimeter. He joined the Vikings as an active member of the roster, listed as a wide receiver wearing No. 14.
Driving Style and Strengths
Jennings is known for his size, strong hands, and physicality as a possession receiver who wins in contested catch situations. His background as a high school quarterback gives him unusual comfort executing trick plays, including designed throws, and he has delivered several key touchdown passes in the NFL. He pairs that versatility with a willingness to work the middle of the field and contribute as a blocker in the run game.
Notable Events and Milestones
Among Jennings’s signature moments, his 43-yard Hail Mary catch for Tennessee against Georgia stands out, as does his dual-threat performance in Super Bowl LVIII, where he threw and caught a touchdown. He also became the first wide receiver in NFL history to throw multiple playoff touchdown passes, and he posted a career-high 11 receptions for 175 yards and three touchdowns in a 2024 road loss to the Los Angeles Rams.
Jauan Jennings Career Wins
Across his NFL career through the 2025 season, Jennings compiled 210 receptions for 2,581 receiving yards and 22 receiving touchdowns. While team-level win totals shift year to year, his individual production has trended upward, peaking in 2024 with 77 receptions for 975 yards and six touchdowns.
NFL Highlights
Jennings’s first NFL touchdown came in Week 2 of the 2021 season against the Philadelphia Eagles. His most recent season with the 49ers, 2025, ended with 55 receptions for 643 yards and nine touchdowns, capped by a Wild Card Round win over the Philadelphia Eagles in which he threw a touchdown pass on a trick play. As a Super Bowl LVIII participant and champion with the 49ers, he owns a signature postseason resume despite playing on a seventh-round contract path.
Other Performances
At the college level, Jennings finished his Tennessee career with 146 receptions for 2,153 yards and 18 touchdowns, highlighted by a 2019 senior season with 59 receptions for 969 yards and eight touchdowns. He also posted a seven-reception, 174-yard, two-touchdown game against South Carolina that year, one of the strongest individual outings of his college career.
Jauan Jennings Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Public biographical information about Jennings’s parents and immediate family members is limited, and detailed family background has not been widely published.
Personal Life
Jennings was born and raised in Cowan and Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and has spent the bulk of his adult life in the United States pursuing a professional football career. He maintains a presence on social media under his personal handle.
2025 Season Performance
Jennings entered the 2025 season as the 49ers’ leading wide receiver following his career-best 2024 campaign. Although contract talks stalled and a trade request was denied, a restructured deal kept him in San Francisco and gave him a chance to post another productive year. He finished the 2025 regular season with 55 receptions for 643 yards and nine touchdowns, continuing his role as a trusted target in the red zone and on third downs.
In the playoffs, Jennings helped the 49ers past the Philadelphia Eagles in the Wild Card Round, delivering another trick-play touchdown pass to Christian McCaffrey and cementing a place in league history as the first wide receiver with multiple postseason passing touchdowns. His 2025 production, combined with his 2024 breakout, made him one of the most efficient mid-round receivers in the league over that two-year stretch.
With his San Francisco contract set to expire after 2025, Jennings entered the 2026 offseason as a free agent, eventually signing a one-year deal with the Minnesota Vikings in May 2026, the next chapter of his career.
