Terique Owens Waived by San Francisco 49ers

It is the time of year when teams have to begin to narrow down their rosters, and the San Francisco 49ers have recently announced they are waiving wide receiver Terique Owens. Owens is a rookie in the NFL, and the son of former NFL wide receiver, Terrell Owens. Here is a look at Owens’ short stint with the 49ers, why he was released, and what could be next for the young receiver.

San Francisco 49ers Sign Terique Owens

Following the 2024 NFL Draft, the 49ers signed Owens as an undrafted free agent. Although it was known that the chances of him making the final roster were slim to none, it was still a cool moment for 49ers fans. As well known, Owen’s father, Terrell Owens, spent eight years of his NFL career with the San Francisco 49ers. Getting the chance to see his son in a 49ers uniform was a nice moment. Of course, that is not why he was signed.

The 49ers signed Owens after he spent three years playing for Missouri State. Before that, he spent one year with Florida Atlantic and one year with Contra Costa College. According to Missouri State Football, in 2023 Owens was ranked 12th nationally in yards per reception. He was also ranked second in the MVCF for that.

49ers Release Terique Owens

Now to the most recent news on Owens which is that the team has released/waived him. The news was released by the 49ers directly as they announced the most recent roster moves. The 49ers website stated that on Wednesday morning, the team waived Owens with an injury designation. The team is also releasing safety Erik Harris. With these two players leaving the roster, the 49ers are able to sign wide receiver Jontre Kirklin and running back Ke’Shawn Vaughn.

The next question is why did the 49ers release Owens before the first preseason game this weekend? The news was released a little later in the day by Mike Garafolo on X. He states that Owens has a small fracture in his right hand that would leave out for about five to seven weeks.

The 49ers’ wider receiver room has been in the news a lot lately. With all the rumors of Brandon Aiyuk likely to be traded, the depth of the team has been discussed. San Francisco will have Deebo Samuel, Jauan Jennings, and Ricky Pearsall, but will want to be confident in their depth pieces. This gives the team a chance to bring in other positions of need and see what they can do as the team narrows down the 53-man roster.

Unfortunately, this means Owens will not be playing with the 49ers in this weekend’s preseason game against the Tennessee Titans. This could have been fun to watch, and help other teams see how he is during in-game scenarios outside of college tape, but five to seven weeks keeps him out until the regular season.

What’s Next for the Wide Receiver

The difficult part with sustaining an injury in the preseason is not being able to play in any games. That does not mean it is over for Owens. With the preseason here, teams will begin to see their weaknesses. Teams will find they need more wide receiver depth and potentially give Owens a shot. Although his talent may be raw, coming from a father formerly in the NFL could help him. Teams may trust the name enough to give him at least a workout with them. If they then feel he is capable, Owens could potentially get a shot somewhere else.

Owens is a raw prospect. He has shown potential for the future, but he also had numerous practices where he was dropping passes. He is only a rookie and his time could come one day. As for his future with the 49ers, perhaps the team will see him again in the future on the practice squad if things work out like that.