Jacob Cowing wants to accomplish something no 49ers punt returner has done since 2011.
The 23-year-old rookie wide receiver, who San Francisco selected No. 135 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft is projected to compete for the 49ers' primary punt return role this summer.
Speaking to the media at rookie minicamp on Friday, Cowing was asked about the pressure that comes with being a punt returner.
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“I’d say if you’re comfortable back there, I would say that you don’t have pressure,” Cowing told reporters. “I think just as you get more [and] more repetitions at it, the more comfortable you will be back there, so then like the pressure of that will kind of wear off of you.”
With Ray-Ray McCloud’s departure to the Atlanta Falcons, Cowing is in prime position to headline the 49ers’ punt return core, although he recognizes that there’s work to be done before he goes for the franchise’s first punt-return touchdown since 2011.
“I think in this moment for me, it’s just continuing to get better at that aspect of my game,” Cowing shared. “It’s catching and getting comfortable and just trying to get the ball down the field and trying to go score touchdowns.
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“I heard that over a decade here it hasn’t been accomplished yet, so it’s definitely one of my goals this year.”
The University of Arizona product ran a 4.38 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine and is characterized by his explosiveness on the field.
Despite generating a league-leading 273 yards off of 34 punt returns in 2023, San Francisco's longest return was just 19 yards.
In his rookie season, Cowing is determined to do what was last done by Ted Ginn Jr. against the Seattle Seahawks at Candlestick Park during Jim Harbaugh’s reign.
If he can manage to deliver, that will earn the recently-drafted player more than six points among The Faithful.
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