This is the Chronicle’s annual offseason advice column for San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan, which is always written with a wink and poke.
That is not to suggest that the real guidelines haven’t been taken seriously throughout time. But it’s been a running joke that the 49ers’ top decision-makers are listening to the advice of a beat writer who never played past his freshman year of high school and hasn’t won a fantasy football league championship in 20 years. But that was back when the 49ers had four NFC Championship Games and two Super Bowls in five seasons. And this comes after the 49ers performed poorly in 2024. A year after being one win away from a Super Bowl title, the 49ers ended one win ahead of the Carolina Panthers. And the folks in charge don’t seem so great after a 6-11 catastrophe in which they helped set the tone by dragging their feet on contract discussions with wideout Brandon Aiyuk and left tackle Trent Williams. More for You ‘Talk about betting the farm’: Inside the 49ers’ all-in effort to beat the Cowboys 30 years ago.
The 49ers’ NFC title game at Candlestick Park on January 15, 1995 – San Francisco 38,… 49ers’ road to relevance rests on duplicating the success of the 2024 draft How might the San Francisco 49ers regain relevance? The framework for returning to… After the games began, their defence allowed the fourth most points in the NFL, possibly because Lynch and Shanahan underestimated the impact of releasing defensive lineman Arik Armstead and replacing him with Maliek Collins. And the choice to sign linebacker DeVondre Campbell to a $5 million contract? Not good! A year ago, two days after the 49ers fell short in Super Bowl LVIII, Lynch looked ahead to the offseason, stating that the 49ers “needed finishers in every area of our team.” In 2024, however, the 49ers lost five games despite having second-half leads and were outscored 165-88 in the fourth quarter.
That is, they clearly still need finishes. And, perhaps, some assistance from an outside source with modest credentials? The latest plan for their offseason: Pay QB Brock Purdy ASAP. When asked about the looming offseason contract discussions after the regular season, Lynch stated that Purdy was “our guy”. And Shanahan stated that Purdy would be the quarterback as long as he was the coach because “I know he is capable of getting the Niners to a Super Bowl in the future.” That’s great, guys. That suggests you see him as a franchise quarterback. And those people make at least $53 million a year. So tell Paraag Marathe and the 49ers to stop making lowball opening proposals and instead make a reasonable offering. It is not just a good-faith gesture to a player who has been severely underpaid in his first three seasons, but it is also in the best interests of the club.
Deebo Samuel, a wide receiver, had a disappointing season in 2022 after his contract drama was resolved. In 2023, pass rusher Nick Bosa refused to budge in contract negotiations; the 49ers eventually surrendered four days before the season opener, and Bosa blamed his slow start on his holdout. Last year, Aiyuk and Williams signed at the last minute, leading to seasons in which they missed 17 games and landed on injured reserve. Purdy is eager to negotiate an agreement before the offseason program begins in April, and when asked if he would report without a new contract in hand, he declined to comment.
Do the 49ers really want to follow up a six-win season with what they believe will be a bounce-back season without their star player? This is not to say that the 49ers should make Purdy the highest-paid player at his position, with a contract exceeding that of Dallas’ Dak Prescott ($60 million). However, there should be a very narrow negotiation window. After all, there are compelling cases that Purdy is on par with or better than Detroit’s Jared Goff ($53 million), Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa ($53.1 million), Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence ($55 million), and Green Bay’s Jordan Love ($55 million). That’s the marketplace. So, if he’s your guy, pay him like the other guys. But add some extra for QB inflation. Do it swiftly. Retain linebacker Dre Greenlaw.
This doesn’t seem like a top priority. Greenlaw has never been chosen to an All-Pro team or voted into a Pro Bowl, has missed 37 of his 100 career games due to injury, and is coming off a season in which he played only 34 snaps due to a torn Achilles in February. But did you see those photos? The 49ers defence played 68 quarters in 2024, and their best two quarters coincided with Greenlaw’s presence on the field. Greenlaw played 28 first-half snaps in the 49ers’ 12-6 loss to the division champion Rams on December 12, and they held Los Angeles to three points, four first downs, and 89 yards. Greenlaw’s eight tackles were crucial, and it’s no accident that linebacker Fred Warner had a career-high 15 tackles in that game, but there’s something about Greenlaw’s intimidating presence that helps the 49ers. This squad requires his nasty. Greenlaw has seven career unnecessary roughness penalties and has been ejected twice. He’s flammable. Furthermore, it is invaluable.
The 49ers are 44-20 in games played by Greenlaw over his six-season career, and 16-20 while he is injured. Find a film of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ reaction when Greenlaw was injured in the second quarter of Super Bowl LVIII. He realized exactly how much Greenlaw meant. Warner, who had spent much of the season lamenting the defense’s inability to live up to their lofty standards, acknowledged that Greenlaw allowed them to briefly regain their confidence against the Rams. “Just having him back out there, you can see it,” Warner said. “It jumped off the tape.” In most circumstances, it makes little sense to overpay for a linebacker with a lengthy medical history who is coming off a season in which he failed to complete a game.
In this situation, the 49ers cannot afford to avoid taking the risk. Draft linemen. There are several of them. The 49ers own four picks in the first three rounds of the NFL draft. They should utilize all of them on linemen. What about an offensive tackle, guard/center, defensive tackle, and edge rusher? Yes, we get that drafts are fluid and teams must be prepared to pivot, blah, blah. However, the 49ers must not lose sight of the bigger picture: they must improve – significantly – in the areas where the NFL has the most bodies. On defence, they have a huge need at tackle.
They will release Javon Hargrave, as they did with Armstead last year, leaving Collins, Jordan Elliott, and Kevin Givens as the primary choices. Those guys are OK, but Armstead and Hargrave make a difference. So, spend the 11th pick on Michigan’s Mason Graham, the best interior lineman available. What if Graham isn’t around? There is also a need for an offensive lineman, and the 49ers may replace Colton McKivitz with a rookie who could eventually replace Williams, who will turn 37 in July and missed the final seven games due to the latest in a long string of ankle issues. When the 49ers make their first pick, they may have two intriguing options available: LSU’s Will Campbell and Ohio State’s Josh Simmons. And that’s only the start. The 49ers have Bosa and Leonard Floyd as edge rushers, with a drop-off to players like Yetur-Gross Matos.
And, assuming left guard Aaron Banks leaves in free agency, are there any clear-cut starters on the offensive line besides Williams and right guard Dominick Puni? The Rams recovered from their 5-12 season in 2022, thanks in part to a variation of our address-the-trenches draft strategy. They utilized their first two picks in 2023, a second and a third rounder, to select an offensive lineman (Steve Avila) and a pass rusher (Byron Young). They also utilized their two 2023 draft picks, a first and a second rounder, on defensive linemen (Jared Verse and Braden Fiske). Avila started at left guard this season, while Young, Verse, and Fiske combined for 20.5 sacks before adding five in two postseason games. Make a free-agency splash at cornerback. Why spend high-end draft picks on positions like offensive lineman, defensive tackle, and edge rusher?
Those positions are among the most expensive in free agency, and we recently asked that the 49ers spend at least $55 million per year on their quarterback and make it quick. Given certain financial limits, they’d be prudent to make their annual free-agent splash on a cornerback, like they did in 2022 when they signed Charvarius Ward to a three-year, $40.5 million contract. Three years later, Ward is poised to leave in free agency, leaving the top of their depth chart with Deommodore Lenoir, Renardo Green, and… Darrell Luter? Ever hear of Tre Avery? Jets cornerback D.J. Reed, a fifth-round pick of the 49ers in 2018, has declared he will test free agency, but he may be out of their price range. A less expensive option may be the Saints’ 2021 third-round pick Paulson Adebo, who has 10 career interceptions but missed 10 games last season due to a broken leg.
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