The San Francisco 49ers were heavily active in NFL free agency a year ago at this time. Niner Noise sets the table for free agency for 2018 with this all-inclusive breakdown.
The 2018 NFL offseason has already gotten off to a wild start, although the San Francisco 49ers have remained largely inactive.
A flurry of trades and releases, including multiple ones within the NFC West, have dominated the headlines leading up to the start of NFL free agency on Mar. 14. Yet the Niners haven’t exactly been involved in these.
It makes sense why they haven’t.
San Francisco 49ers
General manager John Lynch needs to acquire talent, not part ways with it. And one of the main ways this happens is by sending off precious NFL Draft picks.
That’s not where the 49ers’ surplus lies right now. Instead, that’s cap space.
Even after inking quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to an NFL-leading five-year, $137.5 million deal earlier this offseason, the Niners still had just over $70 million in cap space — fifth most in the league, according to Over the Cap, prior to the Richard Sherman signing, of course.
That’s a lot. And if we learned anything about Lynch a year ago, he won’t hesitate to use this method to make improvements.
Being “aggressively prudent,” as Lynch put things, the Niners will look to solve some major holes this offseason.
There are a few.
But before we start there, let’s take a look at pending free agents San Francisco will likely let test the market this offseason.
Pending Free Agents on the 49ers Roster
It’s not a surprise to see a good chunk of San Francisco’s pending free agents as holdovers from the previous regime under former general manager Trent Baalke.
John Lynch spent considerable effort overhauling and replacing this crop last season, and the next phase likely continues this offseason.
SideLion Report
For starters, here’s the list of pending free agents on the Niners roster until the league’s new year:
- Safety Eric Reid
- Defensive Tackle Tank Carradine
- Inside Linebacker Brock Coyle
- Right Guard Brandon Fusco
- Cornerback Leon Hall
- Running Back Carlos Hyde
- Defensive Tackle Leger Douzable
- Wide Receiver Louis Murphy
- Defensive Tackle Chris Jones
- Cornerback Asa Jackson
- Center Tim Barnes
- Tight End Logan Paulsen
- Cornerback Dontae Johnson
- Safety Antone Exum
- EDGE Aaron Lynch
The two biggest names on this list are safety Eric Reid and running back Carlos Hyde. Reid, who bumped down to strong safety under coordinator Robert Saleh this season, was essentially pushed out of a starting job here by the younger Jaquiski Tartt.
Reid eventually got his position back after Tartt went down with a season-ending arm injury last year. But Tartt looks to be a bigger part of the future. And he’s still on his rookie contract.
Meanwhile, the 49ers met with Hyde’s agent at the NFL Scouting Combine. The details of that meeting aren’t exactly known, but the Niners didn’t apply the franchise tag to either Hyde or Reid.
It seems as if San Francisco is comfortable letting both walk.
Other Names the 49ers May Re-Sign
The 49ers need another EDGE presence after electing not to pick up veteran edge rusher Elvis Dumervil’s 2018 option. Defensive tackle Tank Carradine was supposed to be a quality pass-rusher off the outside, as his collegiate campaign indicated. But Carradine never reached that point, developing into a better run stopper at the pro level.
San Francisco doesn’t need another one of those, but depth could help.
Right guard Brandon Fusco, who was one of the more consistent (if not brilliant) offensive linemen last year, could be a solid re-sign candidate. Guard play is a question mark for the Niners this offseason, making this a possibility.
Meanwhile, linebacker Reuben Foster’s off-field circumstances — and probable six-game suspension in 2018 — push re-signing Brock Coyle atop the team’s to-do list. Coyle, primarily a special teams player, earned significant starting time last season, starting 10 games over the course of the year.
Top 49ers Needs for 2018
San Francisco has to be feeling pretty good after wrapping up last season on a five-game winning streak.
But don’t let that fool you. The 49ers still have plenty of holes to fill and only so many resources to fill them.
Much of this will depend on the landscape of free agency and, subsequently, the 2018 NFL Draft. And after the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions tagged edge rushers Demarcus Lawrence and Ezekiel Ansah, respectively, the market for a true impact EDGE dried up pretty quickly.
Including EDGE, here is a good indication of the Niners’ top needs this offseason:
- EDGE
- Running Back
- Wide Receiver
- Linebacker
- Offensive Line
San Francisco needed a starting-caliber cornerback to pair with second-year pro Ahkello Witherspoon this year. But grabbing Richard Sherman on a three-year deal just ahead of NFL free agency pretty much solves it being a top need. Depth would be nice, though.
Flipping to the other side of the ball, the 49ers could look to find a veteran replacement for Carlos Hyde, although there is a pretty deep crop of talented tailbacks available in the NFL Draft.
Instead, wide receiver figures to be a position of intrigue.
Jimmy Garoppolo got by with a relatively unknown crop of receivers last year, including helping Marquise Goodwin nearly become the team’s first 1,000-yard receiver since Anquan Boldin back in 2014.
Even with the veteran, Pierre Garçon, returning from a season-ending neck injury last year, it’s feasible to see San Francisco make an upgrade.
Free Agents with Reported Ties to the 49ers
With a plethora of needs and just over $70 million in cap space, John Lynch could go one of a number of different directions when NFL free agency kicks off.
It’s not hard to find players one thinks would be good fits for San Francisco. They’re everywhere this time of year.
Instead, let’s focus on players either linked to the Niners by news, reports or insider analysis.
Wide Receiver Allen Robinson
San Francisco’s receiving corps looks good heading into 2018. It’s just not great.
Adding a big-play threat like Jacksonville Jaguars wideout Allen Robinson would provide a huge boost. Robinson missed all but one game in 2017 with an ACL injury. But he’s not far removed from a 1,400-yard campaign in 2015.
And he’s only 24 years old.
NFL.com’s Matt Harmon actually listed the 49ers as a best fit for Robinson this season:
"Robinson would also help Jimmy Garoppolo improve on the one other area in which the passer didn’t perform like the second-coming of Tom Brady last season. While Garoppolo ripped teams wide open in the short-to-intermediate area, the team didn’t have the big physical receivers on the outside to win down the field. Garoppolo had a 24.3 passer rating on deep throws last year. In his peak season when playing with a functional version of Blake Bortles, Robinson offered unparalleled effectiveness in the vertical game."
Robinson likely won’t come cheap, though. Yet San Francisco does have the cap space to get into something of a bidding war.
Running Back Dion Lewis
The NFL Draft seems the likeliest of spots for the Niners to land a running back.
But a report from Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio listed the 49ers as one of six or seven teams “potentially interested.”
Lewis, who never rushed for more than 300 yards before his 896-yard, six-touchdown 2017 campaign, wouldn’t be an every-down back. That’s not a concern, though, as Kyle Shanahan has operated dual-tailback sets in the majority of his offenses.
Plus, Lewis possesses more-than adequate pass-catching abilities — a must-have trait for a Shanahan-type back.
Cornerback Richard Sherman
Ah, yes. San Francisco fans’ biggest adversary.
The Seattle Seahawks released cornerback Richard Sherman on Friday, and he lasted on the open market just one day before inking a deal with the Niners.
Let’s just leave this here:
Some men just want to watch the world burn. #49ers pic.twitter.com/41VUIutKbs
— Rob Lowder (@Rob_Lowder) March 17, 2017
2018 NFL Free Agency Start and Information
There’s a pretty specific breakdown on how the start of free agency, which coincides with the league’s new year, can be handled.
You can read more on those dates here.
Teams can legally start negotiating with player agents on Mar. 12 — two days before the official start of free agency. Deals can’t be finalized until free agency begins. But that’s why you often get a flurry of announced deals right at the beginning of the league’s new year.
Speaking of such, the league’s calendar turns over on Mar. 14, with free agency officially beginning at 4 p.m. ET — the moment all 2017 contracts expire.
Niner Noise will be keeping you up to date on all the 49ers’ free-agent pickups and acquisitions starting on Wednesday.
You can find all the information right here.
Next: 5 under-the-radar free-agent signings the 49ers could make
In the meantime, gear up for what promises to be an exciting offseason around the NFL.