Trey Sermon’s disappointing tenure with the 49ers may have come to a swift end.
The 2021 third-round pick was placed on waivers Wednesday, to make room for guard Blake Hance, who reportedly was claimed from the Cleveland Browns earlier in the day. Despite being picked at No. 88 overall out of Ohio State, the 6-foot, 215-pound Sermon could never assert himself with the Niners.
The 49ers also announced Wednesday that starting free safety Jimmie Ward and reserve linebacker Curtis Robinson were placed on Injured Reserve, as they brought back defensive lineman Jordan Willis and tight end Tyler Kroft to the 53-man roster after releasing them Tuesday. Ward and Robinson will have to miss at least the first four games of the season.
There’s a chance Sermon could clear waivers and return to the 49ers as a practice squad running back, but this is clearly an indictment of his standing on the team. Given the 49ers made 53-man roster cuts Tuesday, it’s logical to think Sermon was occupying spot No. 53 on the squad.
Sermon appeared sparingly in nine games with two starts during his rookie season, with 41 carries for 167 yards and a touchdown. He also caught three passes for 26 yards, but was outshined by fellow 2021 draftee Elijah Mitchell, a sixth-rounder out of Louisiana who led the squad with 963 rushing yards in 11 games.
From what we could see in training camp and preseason, Sermon appeared to be flat-footed and indecisive in the backfield. Preseason stats don’t carry much weight, but Sermon averaged a paltry 2.1 yards per carry with 39 yards on 19 carries.
Once again, he was outdone by a rookie.undrafted Georgia Tech product Jordan Mason, who led the 49ers in preseason with 94 yards on 19 rushes and impressed with his downhill style.
It’s rare to see the 49ers part with such a high draft pick so early, but they still have four running backs on the roster with Mitchell, Jeff Wilson Jr., rookie Ty Davis-Price and Mason. Not to mention they carry fullback Kyle Juszczyk.
Sermon wasn’t made available to reporters much throughout his short tenure with the 49ers so outsiders didn’t get to know much about his personality. We’ll have to wait and see if anyone else in the NFL wants to take a chance on the 23-year-old before Week 1.
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