SF 49ers: 5 free agents Niners can’t afford to let go in 2021
By Peter Panacy
No. 4: SF 49ers EDGE Kerry Hyder
Exiting training camp, journeyman EDGE Kerry Hyder was on the fringes of the Niners roster. True, it’s always good having some pass-rushing depth. But San Francisco’s defensive line was both deep and talented.
By season’s end, Hyder was the SF 49ers’ leading sack specialist with 8.5 quarterback takedowns.
This, of course, was in the wake of losing fellow defensive linemen, Nick Bosa, Dee Ford and Solomon Thomas, to season-ending injuries early in the season. And while few would expect Hyder to generate those kinds of stats again behind a first-team pass rush, his role is something that could see some prominence again in 2021 if retained.
Bosa is expected to return fully healthy from his Week 2 ACL tear, but Ford’s status with a back injury is very much questionable. Even if Ford returns healthy, there’s a good chance the Niners move on from him in a cap-savings move.
San Francisco needs a quality one-two punch in its pass-rush department, and there aren’t exactly a lot of bona fide options either in the draft or in free agency to make up for Hyder’s would-be loss.
There’s a chance Hyder wants to cash in on a career-best season. But he also only generated campaigns of eight-plus sacks with defensive line coach Kris Kocurek, the other being in 2016 when both were with the Detroit Lions.
Perhaps Hyder realizes his value and production won’t be equaled anywhere else but with the SF 49ers.