A rare college position-switch success story whose NFL career never survived a brutal run of injuries.
Jalen Hurd remains best known for one of the more unusual transformations in recent college football history: a 1,000-yard SEC running back at Tennessee who reinvented himself as a big-bodied wide receiver at Baylor. That versatility made him a third-round NFL prospect, but injuries prevented him from ever appearing in a regular-season NFL game.
Path to the league
Hurd ran for 899 yards as a freshman and 1,285 yards as a sophomore at Tennessee before a head injury limited his junior season. He transferred to Baylor and switched to wide receiver, catching 69 passes for 946 yards and 4 touchdowns in his lone season there. The San Francisco 49ers drafted him in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft.
Career highlights
Hurd's draft profile as a converted running back turned big-slot receiver made him a unique matchup prospect entering the league. That promise was never realized on the field: a back injury cost him his entire rookie season, and a torn ACL wiped out his 2020 campaign as well.
2025 season recap
Hurd did not play in the 2025 season. His NFL career ended without a single regular-season appearance after a series of setbacks, including a torn ACL, a concussion, and a broken vertebra, led to his retirement in 2023.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Jalen Hurd
- Pro Football Reference: Jalen Hurd
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Wide Receiver
- Group
- offense
- College
- Baylor
- Hometown
- Hendersonville, TN, USA
- Age
- 30
- Status
- active
