Just three seasons ago, Rod Streater appeared to be a star on the rise.
The former undrafted free agent from Temple made the Raiders roster in 2012 and then had a big year in 2013, catching 60 passes for 888 yards and four touchdowns.
But injuries put Streater on the sidelines the past two seasons. In 2014 and 2015, Streater played in just four games for Oakland and had a total of 10 catches for 92 yards.
Now Streater, just 28, is hoping for a rebirth with the 49ers, who traded for him this past weekend. And the 49ers definitely need Streater to to get back on track in 2016.
With injuries to Bruce Ellington, Eric Rogers and DeAndre Smelter, the 49ers receiving corps has been thinned considerably. So, over the past week and a half, the team has brought in a pair of veterans, Streater and Jeremy Kerley, to join Torrey Smith, Quinton Patton and rookie Aaron Burbridge on the 53-man roster.
Streater had signed with the Kansas City Chiefs in the offseason and had a solid exhibition season, making six catches for 89 yards, including one catch for 31 yards.
Streater brings size (6-foot-2, 195 pounds) to the 49ers, something head coach Chip Kelly and his staff were looking for. They had hoped Rogers, the former Canadian Football League standout, would bring that element to the team, but he was lost for the year.
Local
“We felt it was a big blow to us when we lost Eric in the preseason,” Kelly told Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee. “So to get another outside receiver to complement Torrey Smith and Quinton Patton was a maneuver we had to make.”
Streater seems excited by the chance to return to the Bay Area, too.
“Officially signed with the @49ers I’m excited to start this new chapter of my life,” he tweeted Sunday. “God is great! Time to work! #NinerEmpire.”
Streater, finally healthy and apparently in the Chiefs’ plans this summer, had impressed his coaches and teammates in his limited time with Kansas City, playing both slot and outside receiver positions. Offensive coordinator Matt Nagy cited Streater’s intelligence, and so did teammate Jeremy Maclin.
“I think Rod’s done a phenomenal job,” Maclin said recently. “We’ve asked him to play outside, we’ve moved him to the slot and I think he’s a very intelligent guy. He’s picked up the playbook really well. I think he’s going to help us.”
