Much like many players of his generation, 49ers rookie WR Nathan Palmer grew up idolizing Randy Moss.

Palmer remembers trying to outleap defenders in Pop Warner football while calling out “Moss” and getting upset when he wasn’t allowed to wear Moss’ No. 84 while in middle school.

“Moss, Ted Ginn, those are guys I grew up watching and now I’m sitting in the same meeting room with them,” he said. “It was very intimidating at first. You walk in you say, ‘Wow, that’s Vernon Davis. Wow, that’s NaVorro Bowman,’ but everyone has been cool.”

After signing with the 49ers after going undrafted out of Northern Illinois, Palmer found himself regularly fielding the same question: Why choose the 49ers with all those good receivers?

“It was simple. Everywhere you go, you’re going to have to compete, so why not compete with the best?” he said. “I felt like it was a genuine place. I liked the system they run and I felt I would fit in well.”

Palmer knows he isn’t about to displace Michael Crabtree, Mario Manningham, Moss or first-round pick A.J. Jenkins on the depth chart, but it hasn’t stopped him from becoming one of the standout rookies in training camp.

“I like his demeanor, athleticism, quickness, balance and ball skills, attention to detail, knowing what to do, making instinctive adjustments that you can’t coach -- or you can talk about coaching but not everybody gets,” offensive coordinator Greg Roman said. “He’s gone a great job. Day-in and day-out his stock is going up.”

CB Tarell Brown has gone up against Palmer numerous times in practice and can be counted among the impressed.

“He gets in and out of his cuts really well and has an amazing burst,” Brown said.

Before visiting the 49ers’ facility during the pre-draft process, Palmer had never visited the West Coast. Now, he says he’ll do anything to stay.

“Anything they ask me to do here, I’ll be willing to do,” he said. “If that’s staying here on the [53-man roster], the practice squad or handing out water bottles … as long as I get to stay around here, I’m cool.”

Palmer caught 93 passes for 1,575 yards and 16 TDs in his four-year career at NIU, where he was a third-team All-Mid-American Conference selection following his senior year.

Follow 49ers reporter Kyle Bonagura on Twitter: @CBSSportsNFLSF and @KyleBonagura.