Grading the San Francisco 49ers Offseason so Far

Re-signing Players

The 49ers were able to make a number of transactions with players either entering free agency in 2016 or guys the team wanted to keep under contract for a few more seasons.

Here’s the list of re-signed players, courtesy of Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area:

–K Phil Dawson (UFA): 1 year/$3.134 million
–NT Ian Williams (extension): 5 years/undisclosed
–TE Garrett Celek (extension): 4 years/$10.2 million, $2.5 million signing bonus
–DL Quinton Dial (extension): 4 years/$12.7 million, $3.2 million signing bonus
–RB Shaun Draughn (extension): 1 year/$760,000
–LB Ray-Ray Armstrong (extension): 1 year/$675,000

Four of the six transactions are noteworthy. Retaining the seemingly ageless wonder in kicker Phil Dawson hopefully will ensure San Francisco’s field-goal percentage stays high in 2016.

And nose tackle Ian Williams — who was the Niners’ best defender, according to Pro Football Focus last season — needed to be another one of the 49ers’ top re-sign priorities this offseason. And locking up fellow defensive lineman Quinton Dial was also a smart move.

Tight end Garrett Celek flashed some promising moments last year before being sidelined with an injury, and he could end up being an integral part in Kelly’s offense.

San Francisco did lose out on re-signing veteran left guard Alex Boone, who signed a four-year, $26.8 million deal with the Minnesota Vikings during the initial phase of free agency. Yet few signs pointed to the Niners trying to retain his services.

The team has yet to re-sign free agents like wide receiver Anquan Boldin and running back Reggie Bush, and only the former seems remotely plausible to come back to San Francisco for another season.

So the 49ers did a commendable job in retaining their own free agents.

Grade: B+

Next: Free Agency