San Francisco 49ers: Previewing 2019 free-agent market at edge rusher
By Peter Panacy
No. 4: Ezekiel Ansah, Detroit Lions
Another option the 49ers could look at on the free-agent market this offseason is Detroit Lions EDGE Ezekiel Ansah, who has familiarity with Niners assistant coach Kris Kocurek during their combined tenure in Detroit.
Ansah has his risks, injuries being a key problem. He landed on injured reserve last year after playing in just seven games. And it certainly would appear the Lions have no interest in re-signing Ansah after placing the franchise tag on him for 2018.
He’ll likely hit the open market this offseason, which could be enough to convince San Francisco to take something of a mid-risk, possibly high-reward flier on the soon-to-be 30 year old.
The hope, of course, would be Ansah avoiding injury and coming close to his 12-sack campaign of 2017 — the kind of effort that convinced Detroit to use the franchise tag in the first place. Yet Ansah is a streaky player with more than a few up-and-down seasons. And even though various injuries will lessen his price tag a bit, he’d still likely command a good chunk of change when free agency hits.
Still, if it’s a manageable short-term contract, Ansah joining San Francisco in 2019 wouldn’t be out of the question.