OXFORD – About a year or so ago, former Ole Miss wide receiver Jordan Watkins was playing the latest entry of the Madden video game franchise, its cover graced by San Francisco 49ers star running back Christian McCaffrey. Watkins is now catching passes on the same practice field as McCaffrey as his new teammate.
There were times when Watkins, a Louisville, Kentucky native, wasn’t completely sure he would ever reach his lofty dreams due to injuries. But now that he’s finally in the NFL, even he agrees it’s crazy how things work out sometimes.
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“Last year I remember turning on my PlayStation and playing Madden and seeing Christian on the cover. And now I see him every day in the locker room,” Watkins told the Daily Journal. “So, it’s kind of crazy, for real.”
Watkins, who was drafted by the 49ers in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL Draft (138th overall), transferred to Ole Miss from Louisville prior to the 2022 season and was part of a transfer portal class that won 29 games in three seasons – including a school-record 11 wins in 2023.
Watkins finished his Rebels career with 2,096 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns, including a career-best 906 yards and nine touchdowns in 2024. Despite his yardage total ranking inside the program’s all-time top 10, Watkins never led Ole Miss in receiving yards in any of his three seasons. Key injuries held him back at times – a broken hand in 2023 and a hamstring issue in 2024 – to the point where the usually confident Watkins said he questioned if his NFL goal was “achievable.” He missed last year’s season opener and did not start his first game until Oct. 5 at South Carolina. Watkins had five combined catches in his first four games.
Because of the slow start to the 2024 season and the success of the playmakers Ole Miss had assembled, Watkins said he contemplated using his redshirt and transferring as he was in the midst of a “mental battle … just trying to find my way in.” He opted to see things through in Oxford following conversations with head coach Lane Kiffin and offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. He caught 44 passes for 767 yards over the Rebels’ final eight games and set a school record with 254 yards against Arkansas.
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“(They told me), ‘We know we need to get you going.’ Especially after that loss to Kentucky, (it) really kind of opened things up … did a lot of evaluation to kind of see what we were missing on offense, because we really struggled that game. They came up to me, and I sat down with Charlie and Kiff and they were just like, ‘Hey, you’re the missing piece of the puzzle,’ … So that gave me a lot of confidence, and (I) kind of got my swagger back a little bit.”
Watkins was invited to the NFL Combine and ran a 4.37 40-yard dash, which was tied for sixth-fastest among all receiver participants. That number changed his professional trajectory, Watkins said, as his speed was one of the biggest question marks evaluators had. Ole Miss’ up-tempo offense didn’t always ask its receivers on the backside of plays to run full speed if they weren’t getting the ball, according to Watkins, which often left an incomplete picture of his speed.
“On the first 40 time, they don’t show it on the billboard,” Watkins said. “So, Tre Harris and Jaxson (Dart) were sitting over there on the sidelines because they had just got done working out. And I was … jogging past them and they told me my time. And I kind of had a really, really big smile on my face. It was kind of almost a sigh of relief a little bit because I know that I boosted my draft stock for sure, and I knew I was going to kill the on-field stuff.”
Throughout the draft process, Watkins knew the 49ers were interested in him, as he took a visit with the team. His knew his draft range was fluid, though, as different teams view prospects in different ways. He spent the first day of the draft golfing and went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner with his family and close friends on Day 2 for the second and third rounds, ready in case his name did happen to be called.
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Watkins held a party with his family for Day 3 back home in Louisville and received the call that changed his life at the very end of the fourth round.
“I was outside throwing the football with one of my mom’s friends’ sons, and I was just kind of trying to get my mind off of things a little bit,” Watkins said. “As I was walking in, I heard my other phone ring, the one that I had my draft number on. I (saw) it said San Jose, California on it. And when it did, I knew exactly what team it was. … It was (general manager) John Lynch. He kind of was just like, ‘Hey man, this is John Lynch with the 49ers, and just letting you know we’re super proud of you and we’re going to take you right here with this next pick.’ And then I got to talk to coach (Kyle) Shanahan, and then I got to talk to the owner as well.”
While there are a few similarities in the offenses Ole Miss and the 49ers run, one of the biggest differences is the depth of the routes he is now asked to run, Watkins said, as quarterbacks get more time in the pocket at the professional level. There’s also the lack of up-tempo offense and learning a new locker room. But Watkins has enjoyed getting to work with McCaffrey, quarterback Brock Purdy, tight end George Kittle and the team’s plethora of other stars.
And as he looks at the start of his new life, Watkins can’t help but pinch himself from time to time.
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He made it.
“Dreaming of it as a kid, it’s something that only 1% of the people in my profession accomplish,” Watkins said. “And to be a part of that 1% is kind of crazy and just so surreal, just knowing all the hard work and dedication that it took to get there.”
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