The San Francisco 49ers have a major shortage at wide receiver. So re-signing veteran wideout Jeremy Kerley would make a lot of sense heading into 2017 NFL free agency.
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jeremy Kerley is a free agent this offseason. And the Niners would be more than wise to re-sign him to a new deal.
Fans recall how Kerley found his way to Santa Clara. When fellow wideout Bruce Ellington went down with a season-ending hamstring injury prior to Week 1 last year, the Niners engineered a trade to send underperforming draft bust Brandon Thomas to the Detroit Lions in exchange for Kerley.
It worked out well.
San Francisco 49ers
Kerley ended up leading the 49ers with 64 catches and 667 receiving yards in an otherwise anemic offense.
2016 was the best season Kerley had since his 2012 campaign with the New York Jets. Primarily operating out of the slot, Kerley was a frequent target for former starting quarterback Blaine Gabbert and, to a lesser extent, Colin Kaepernick.
Considering the 49ers have zero concerns with their salary cap, re-signing Kerley to a new deal shouldn’t be too tough.
Especially considering he only made $760,000 last year.
So why would the Niners want to go this route?
An Argument for Kerley
Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport recently put together an assessment on one free agent each NFL franchise should re-sign this offseason.
Kerley was Davenport’s choice for San Francisco. He wrote:
"No one’s going to confuse Kerley with Antonio Brown. But he’s a steady veteran wideout who can return punts.He isn’t going to key a franchise rebirth, but Kerley is worth bringing back."
Additionally, Kerley told Andrew Siciliano of NFL Network (h/t Davenport) he’d like to be back:
"I see a lot of upside to being over there. Like I said, it’s a great place, they got a lot of great talent. A lot of people don’t understand that we were in a lot of those games. 2-14 was a tough record, but we were in a lot of those games, so I think it will be great to go back and be around a lot of those guys that want to win, and I think with a new atmosphere it will be good."
It isn’t as if Kerley is impatient, wanting to land with a team ready to win right away. No, he’s willing to see the process play itself out.
And he’s already demonstrated the ability to be a better upgrade over Ellington.
Finding the Fit
The 49ers have a top-two receiver (not looking at stats) in Torrey Smith. They’ll need another on the outside.
Kerley, at 5-foot-9, is best used out of the slot. Assuming the Niners target a bigger-bodied receiver in the 2017 NFL Draft or free agency, keeping Kerley in this slot role makes sense.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan utilized Atlanta Falcons slot receiver Mohamed Sanu to great effect last year, totaling 59 catches for 653 yards and four touchdowns, complementing receivers like Julio Jones and Taylor Gabriel.
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Kerley is nothing close to Sanu. But one can consider the matchups — teams looking to shut down Smith and a likely free-agent/draft acquisition — and see where Kerley can get his chances.
Additionally, re-signing Kerley would take the pressure off Shanahan and general manager John Lynch in totally overhauling the wide receiver group at once.
Sure, the 49ers need a complete rebuild here. But it can’t happen overnight.
Next: 5 Free-Agent Wide Receivers the 49ers Should Consider
That’s why Kerley makes sense. San Francisco shouldn’t hesitate to give him a two-year deal, or so, to see if he can be a part of the solution moving forward.