San Francisco 49ers offseason review, grades and analysis
By Peter Panacy
49ers’ Actions in Free Agency & Trade Market
Unlike his predecessor, Trent Baalke, John Lynch didn’t hesitate to use San Francisco’s plethora of cap space to make notable upgrades on the free-agent market.
The Niners had plenty of holes, quite literally, after letting so many 2016 players walk. While it was going to be impossible to completely overhaul the team via one free-agent class, Lynch’s efforts deserve some notable recognition as well.
San Francisco 49ers
Free Agents Added
- DT Earl Mitchell
- CB K’Waun Williams
- WR DeAndre Carter
- QB Brian Hoyer
- FB Kyle Juszczyk
- WR Pierre Garcon
- WR Marquise Goodwin
- TE Logan Paulsen
- LB Malcolm Smith
- K Robbie Gould
- QB Matt Barkley
- WR Aldrick Robinson
- LB Brock Coyle
- DB Don Jones
- LB Dekoda Watson
- RB Tim Hightower
- OL Garry Gilliam
- OL Brandon Fusco (post-NFL Draft)
- C Tim Barnes (post-NFL Draft)
49ers Trades
- C Jeremy Zuttah from the Baltimore Ravens
- RB Kapril Bibbs from the Denver Broncos (during NFL Draft)
San Francisco also re-signed wide receiver Jeremy Kerley to a three-year deal, as well as defensive tackle Chris Jones and running back DuJuan Harris to one-year deals.
Harris has subsequently been released, as have some of the UDFA additions — one of the better classes of this type, as pointed out by NFL Spin Zone’s Eric Gamboa.
And all this while maintaining over $71 million in cap space. That’s pretty awesome.
While Lynch didn’t land too many “splashy” free-agent signings — the only real knock here — he did vastly improve the blue-chip areas of the roster, which were just as weak as the lack of legitimate playmakers.
No wonder NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (h/t Kevin Jones of KNBR 680) praised San Francisco for it’s “middle-class approach” to free agency.