# Trent Taylor

Trent Nelson Taylor (born April 30, 1994) is an American professional football wide receiver and punt returner for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Louisiana Tech and was selected by the 49ers in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL draft. He has previously played in the NFL for the Cincinnati Bengals and Chicago Bears.

## Early life

Taylor attended Evangel Christian Academy in Shreveport, Louisiana, where he played high school football for the Eagles. He had 107 receptions for 1,650 yards and 20 touchdowns his senior year and 65 catches for 1,075 yards and 18 touchdowns his junior year. He committed to Louisiana Tech University to play college football.

## College career

Taylor attended Louisiana Tech from 2013 to 2016. During his career, Taylor had 327 receptions for 4,179 yards and 32 touchdowns. The 327 receptions were a school record. In his final collegiate game, he was named the MVP of the 2016 Armed Forces Bowl after recording 12 receptions for 233 yards and two touchdowns.

### College statistics

Legend :
| | Led NCAA Division I FBS |
| Bold | Career high |
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs :
| Season | Games | Games | Receiving | Receiving | Receiving | Receiving | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns |
| Season | GP | GS | Rec | Yards | Avg | TD | Att | Yards | Avg | TD |
| 2013 | 12 | 0 | 28 | 260 | 9.3 | 2 | 6 | 53 | 8.8 | 0 |
| 2014 | 14 | 9 | 64 | 834 | 13.0 | 9 | 22 | 168 | 7.6 | 0 |
| 2015 | 13 | 12 | 99 | 1,282 | 12.9 | 9 | 13 | 83 | 6.4 | 0 |
| 2016 | 14 | 14 | 136 | 1,803 | 13.3 | 12 | 17 | 178 | 10.5 | 0 |
| Career | 53 | 35 | 327 | 4,179 | 12.8 | 32 | 58 | 482 | 8.3 | 0 |

## Professional career

Pre-draft measurables :
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press |
| 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | 181 lb (82 kg) | 28+3⁄4 in (0.73 m) | 8+1⁄4 in (0.21 m) | 4.63 s | 1.58 s | 2.67 s | 4.01 s | 6.74 s | 33.0 in (0.84 m) | 9 ft 9 in (2.97 m) | 13 reps |
| All values from NFL Combine ||||||||||||

### San Francisco 49ers

The San Francisco 49ers selected Taylor in the fifth round (177th overall) of the 2017 NFL draft.
On September 10, 2017, in his NFL debut, Taylor had one reception for eight yards in the season opening 23–3 loss at home to the Carolina Panthers. In Week 3, against the Los Angeles Rams, he scored his first career touchdown, a three-yard pass from quarterback Brian Hoyer, in the fourth quarter, as the 49ers narrowly lost 41–39. Taylor finished his rookie season with 43 receptions for 430 yards and two touchdowns.
In the 2018 season, Taylor had 26 receptions for 215 yards and one touchdown, which came in Week 5 against the Arizona Cardinals.
On September 20, 2019, Taylor was placed on injured reserve after suffering a setback from offseason foot surgery.
In the first game of 2020 and Taylor's first game since 2018, he caught two passes for 7 yards and returned 2 punts for 21 yards as the 49ers lost 24–20 to the Arizona Cardinals. He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the 49ers on December 23, 2020, and activated on January 6, 2021. In the 2020 season, he appeared in 12 games and started one. He played on offense and contributed on punt return duties.

### Cincinnati Bengals

On May 17, 2021, Taylor signed with the Cincinnati Bengals. He was waived on August 31, 2021, and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. He finished the regular season with 2 receptions for 41 yards, 4 kick returns for 68 yards, and 7 punts for 52 yards. On January 29, 2022, Taylor was promoted to the active roster for the AFC Championship Game. He caught a pass from Joe Burrow for a two-point conversion, tying the game at 21 in a game the Bengals went on to win 27–24, securing the Bengals' first Super Bowl appearance since Super Bowl XXIII in 1988.
On February 22, 2022, Taylor re-signed with the Bengals. He opened the 2022 season as the Bengals' primary punt returner along with being the team's backup slot receiver to starter Tyler Boyd. On the season, he returned 33 punts for 340 total yards.
Taylor re-signed with the Bengals on one-year contract on March 27, 2023. He was released during final roster cuts August 29, 2023.

### Chicago Bears

Taylor signed with the Chicago Bears on August 31, 2023. He played in all 17 games for Chicago, recording two targets and no receptions while working primarily as a punt returner (in which he logged 8.2 yards per return).

### San Francisco 49ers (second stint)

On April 16, 2024, Taylor signed a one-year deal to return to the San Francisco 49ers. He was released on August 27, and re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract on January 6, 2025.

## NFL career statistics
### Regular season

| Year | Team | Games | Games | Receiving | Receiving | Receiving | Receiving | Receiving | Rushing | Rushing | Rushing | Rushing | Rushing | Kick returns | Kick returns | Kick returns | Kick returns | Kick returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Fumbles | Fumbles |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost |
| 2017 | SF | 15 | 1 | 43 | 430 | 10.0 | 33 | 2 | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | 18 | 18.0 | 8 | 0 | 30 | 281 | 9.4 | 39 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2018 | SF | 14 | 0 | 26 | 215 | 8.3 | 23 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | 1 | 15 | 15.0 | 15 | 0 | 10 | 78 | 7.8 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2020 | SF | 12 | 1 | 10 | 86 | 8.6 | 29 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 9 | 112 | 12.4 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | CIN | 4 | 0 | 2 | 41 | 20.5 | 26 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | 4 | 68 | 17.0 | 25 | 0 | 7 | 52 | 7.4 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | CIN | 16 | 1 | 6 | 62 | 10.3 | 34 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 3.8 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 7.5 | 9 | 0 | 33 | 340 | 10.3 | 27 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 2023 | CHI | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | −2 | −2.0 | −2 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | 23 | 188 | 8.2 | 31 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Career | Career | 78 | 3 | 87 | 834 | 9.6 | 34 | 3 | 5 | 13 | 2.6 | 9 | 0 | 8 | 106 | 13.3 | 25 | 0 | 112 | 1,051 | 9.4 | 39 | 0 | 10 | 4 |

### Postseason

| Year | Team | Games | Games | Kick returns | Kick returns | Kick returns | Kick returns | Kick returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Punt returns | Fumbles | Fumbles |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost |
| 2021 | CIN | 4 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | 6 | 76 | 12.7 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | CIN | 3 | 0 | 1 | 18 | 18.0 | 18 | 0 | 5 | 39 | 7.8 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Career | Career | 7 | 0 | 1 | 18 | 18.0 | 18 | 0 | 11 | 115 | 10.5 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 1 |