3 ways 49ers can create more cap space in 2020
By Peter Panacy
The San Francisco 49ers improved their NFL salary cap situation by trading DeForest Buckner, but there are other moves the team can make to generate some more space this offseason.
While it was tough to watch, the San Francisco 49ers‘ trade of defensive tackle DeForest Buckner to the Indianapolis Colts just before free agency started freed up roughly $12 million in cap space immediately. Prior to the move, the Niners had just over $10 million available.
Then, according to a report from NBC Sports Bay Area, San Francisco restructured the contract for running back Jerick McKinnon, who spent the last two seasons on injured reserve, which freed up more than $5 million against this year’s cap.
Currently, according to Over the Cap, the 49ers have $15,756,290 available in cap space. This, after the team made some additional low-budget moves after the first wave of free agency.
It’s not a bad spot to be in, considering San Francisco was able to bring back two of its prime pending free agents, defensive end Arik Armstead and safety Jimmie Ward. But considering teams typically reserve about $10 million to sign rookie NFL Draft classes, the 49ers are projected to have just under $6 million remaining heading towards the regular season.
The 49ers probably won’t be making any more big-name free-agent signings this offseason. Yet if they wanted to dip into the ever-dwindling pool of remaining free agents, it would be wise to free up some additional cap space to make such moves possible.
There are a number of ways the Niners can go about doing this, and Niner Noise breaks down three specific actions the team can take this offseason to generate some additional cap room in 2020.