San Francisco 49ers: 3 best player contracts entering 2020
By Peter Panacy
The 49ers have a knack for working great contracts, and in some cases, the value is exceptional. Here are three that stand out entering 2020.
One could make the argument the San Francisco 49ers are among the best teams in the NFL when it comes to contract negotiations.
Perhaps they’re the best.
Regardless, the Niners’ chief contracts negotiator, Executive Vice President of Football Operations Paraag Marathe, has kept San Francisco from getting into salary cap hell, which is considerably more difficult during the good years than bad. While the 49ers’ recent rise to prominence has ultimately put the team higher up against the cap, both Marathe and general manager John Lynch have navigated player contracts about as well as they could have in recent years.
Even if it meant making some tough decisions, such as trading away Pro Bowl defensive tackle DeForest Buckner during the offseason, which cleared up $12 million in cap space and allowed the team not to spend $21 million annually in the coming years.
One of the chief means to success for both Lynch and Marathe is ensuring the team winds up with great-value contracts, often indicated by players either meeting a perfect value or exceeding that value.
Fortunately, San Francisco has a number of players in both categories.
In light of the Kansas City Chiefs dishing out a world-breaking contract worth up to $503 million for quarterback Patrick Mahomes, Niner Noise elected to go in another direction and break down some of the 49ers’ best-value contracts.
This isn’t just a list of players playing on cheap contracts. Instead, it’s the sizable difference between dollar amount and value coming into the equation and providing the top three most-valuable for San Francisco.
Starting off with the Niners’ own quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo.