The San Francisco 49ers stretched their winning streak to three games with a 26-8 triumph over the Cleveland Browns on November 30 at Huntington Bank Field.
However, 49ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings found himself under scrutiny once again amid a potential on-field incident. A Browns player accused Jennings of unsportsmanlike conduct following a heated exchange.
The situation escalated after Maliek Collins went down with an injury, with Jennings reportedly taking things personally during interactions with the Browns’ defense.
Nonetheless, despite the commotion that the wide receiver generated in the Cleveland dressing room, one former NFL player is coming to his defense. During a December 1 appearance on KNBR, Tim Ryan spoke about how Jennings has this ability to get under opponents’ skin.
“I think part of why people get so agitated with Jauan is because of his style of play, which is as physical as it gets,” Ryan said. “It’s not dirty, but he’s going to play ball the way Kyle Shanahan wants him to in terms of his blocking. He’s going to block to the whistle and finish if he’s got you locked up.
“Hell, the referees will even penalize him for legal plays. Remember the Arizona game last year at the end of the season? So I think that’s part of it. And aside from that, Cleveland is probably overreacting with their defensive linemen. But it is what it is, man.”
Browns Players Didn’t Hold Back on Jauan Jennings
After the San Francisco win, Browns’ Shelby Harris was one of the players who publicly criticized the 49ers wideout for his actions after the game. Moreover, he didn’t hold back on his language, wanting to make his feelings about Jennings clear.
“He’s a h–, and I want that known,” Harris said (h/t Camryn Justice of WEWS).”I see why he got punched in the [groin] because he said some things you should never say to another man. But I don’t respect it—saying that and then running behind your O-line is some real soft stuff, and I want that known. I see exactly why they punched him in the [groin]. I’m surprised nobody has punched him in the jaw yet.”
Meanwhile, Myles Garrett was another player who didn’t hold back his remarks when talking about the situation with Jennings.
“So, he had a lot to say that was demeaning and disparaging towards some of our players,” Garrett said (h/t 49ers Web Zone). “And I was just trying to separate everybody. And I tried to go up and ask for what the problem was, and then he started coming at me and, I mean, some guys just roll like that.
“I don’t feel like that belongs in the game. But, hey, if that works for him and them, then more power to him.”
49ers’ Kyle Shanahan Talks Latest Jauan Jennings Situation
Although San Francisco didn’t address the situation after the game, they did so the following day. On December 1, during a conference call with reporters, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan addressed the postgame accusations.
“My understanding was it had nothing to do with Maliek,” Shanahan said (h/t 49ers Web Zone). “We’ve got so much love for Maliek. It just sounded like there was players standing around for a while because of the injury, and then they got chirping at each other.
“I don’t know what words were said, but it sounded like he offended some guys with the words. But it was just about words during an injury timeout.”
Shanahan acknowledged that he had spoken with Jennings about the incident.
“I asked him about it, but I love how Jauan plays,” Shanahan said. “I think Jauan plays to the whistle as well as any player in this league. He is extremely aggressive and plays as hard as he can to the whistle, and he’s been doing that—as Niner fans know, and you guys know—since he’s been here.
“I think sometimes that offends other players and rubs people the wrong way because they’re not used to people going that hard to the whistle. But I think what J.J. is very good at is not breaking rules.”
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