San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jordan Watkins is looking better with each passing week, but it's not just his on-field progress that has impressed head coach Kyle Shanahan.

On the field, Watkins has 10 receptions for 224 receiving yards and one touchdown, and unfortunately, not two after one of his impressive catches was overturned against the Atlanta Falcons.

It's a notable difference from his rookie season, as he missed time in preseason with a high ankle sprain before a calf injury in the regular season, but so far, he has played six games in 2026.

His application and the work he put in when the opportunity presented itself have impressed Shanahan.

"Yeah. I think the more you play, the more success you have, the more confidence you get. I think Jordan's worked through all this and it's hard to just get playing time on our team," Shanahan said to reporters.

"You've got to beat people out. You've got to go ahead of them. Just because you're capable, it doesn't mean that you get it. You've got to beat guys out and he's been close to that, just not quite as consistent as a couple of guys in front of him.

"Got his opportunity with injuries and just the way he attacked it in practice. Some guys, when they don't get their opportunities, they start to make excuses, blame people, listen to social media too much and they don't work quite the same.

"Then their opportunity comes and they're actually worse than what they were two weeks before that. Credit to Jordan, he wasn't like that at all, which takes a mentally strong kid. He kept grinding, kept working and he kept asking what he could do more and to get out there.

"It was, 'Dude, you've just got to be ready when your time's there. You didn't get ahead of those guys in training camp, but that time will come and hopefully you're ready when it comes.'

"He's been more than ready and he's been able to string together a few weeks and he should have more confidence because, yeah, he's earned it."

There's still plenty of development to be made, but the step from his rookie to sophomore year has been a huge leap in all respects.

The next step is to build on the consistency he's shown in recent weeks and continue earning the trust of Shanahan. While he's taken his opportunity with both hands, maintaining that level of performance will be key to earning a more prominent role in San Francisco's offense.