Chris Owusu Can Become a Star

With the 49ers' recent additions of Randy Moss, Mario Manningham and A.J Jenkins to the wide receiver group that already features Michael Crabtree and Kyle Williams, you can be forgiven for allowing Chris Owusu to slip your mind.

I fully expect Moss, Manningham, Jenkins, Crabtree and Williams to make the final roster, but I'm really hoping the team takes a sixth wide receiver in the shape of Owusu.

Coached by Jim Harbaugh at Stanford, Owusu could have been a pretty high draft selection had it not been for worrying concussion issues.

Now, I'm all for Owusu spending a year on the practice squad if he isn't healthy, but if he is fully fit, I want him to be a major weapon for the team.

Whether he contributes as a receiver or return man, I just want another elite athlete on offense who can go deep and create some magic.

Some may say that Ted Ginn fills that role, but I see him as more of a full-time return man who can be a gadget type of player when needed.

Owusu will have little trouble in understanding the system of the San Francisco 49ers; I'm not saying it will be easy, but he did master one of the most complex offenses in college football with Harbaugh at Stanford.

Ty Montgomery is the new star wide receiver at Stanford and the biggest praise he has been given is that he is thought of by many as the "new" Chris Owusu.

Owusu's physical attributes are incredible too; pure 4.3 speed with a 40"-plus vertical to match.

He may be seen as a speed merchant, but a 6'0", near 200-pound frame who can bench press 225 pounds 19 times has plenty of strength to cope with physical corners in the NFL.

The thing to admire most about Owusu is that he reaches his top gear straight away and doesn't slow down until he completes his route. He can also go up and get the ball at its highest point in a similar fashion to a receiver much taller than he is.



He is a big play waiting to happen and he also is less raw in the route-running department than many receivers who were actually drafted in the 2012 NFL Draft.

That being said, he did miss seven games in 2010, some more in 2011 and suffered three concussions in just over a year.

To me, Owusu is a future starter in the NFL if he can stay injury-free because he has blistering speed, strength to beat the press, good route-running and a good pedigree from his time at Stanford.

A three-year starter in college, I really hope Owusu can have a long career with the 49ers in which he can showcase just how dynamic a talent he is.

What do you guys think?