49ers: 4 players who benefit most from NFL free agency signings
By Peter Panacy
The 49ers made some key moves, mostly re-sign deals, in NFL free agency. In turn, those moves sure help out these four on-roster players.
The San Francisco 49ers weren’t expected to be heavy-duty players in NFL free agency this offseason, at least not in light of limited cap space amid a diminished salary cap.
Yet general manager John Lynch was still able to make some critical moves, including re-signing most of his top pending free agents while even bringing in some much-needed talent to bolster the roster.
All in the hopes of upgrading and improving what was an injury-riddled 6-10 squad in 2020.
Those injuries created a swarm of different problems last year, and Lynch’s moves hopefully address those as much as possible. On top of that, a number of the carrying-over players from last season should benefit a lot in the wake of the Niners’ NFL free agency moves.
Including those many re-sign deals Lynch and the front office were able to engineer.
Aside from those returning free agents who cashed in on big contracts — here’s looking at you, left tackle Trent Williams — let’s look at others who wind up benefiting from San Francisco’s free-agent moves.
No. 4: 49ers Offensive Lineman Daniel Brunskill
The 49ers’ 2020 intention was to start the versatile offensive lineman, Daniel Brunskill, at right guard. But a slew of injuries across the offensive line ultimately meant Brunskill had to move around the line once more, particularly filling in as the team’s fourth-string center behind all-injured players, Weston Richburg, Ben Garland and Hroniss Grasu.
Of Brunskill’s 1,087 snaps played last year, 558 of them were at center.
Brunskill struggled with the extra responsibility, namely calling out protections, which isn’t his strong suit.
Fortunately, the Niners were able to rework Richburg’s contract and will likely part ways with him later this offseason — a move preceding the free-agent addition of six-time Pro Bowl veteran Alex Mack, who previously thrived in head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense back with the Cleveland Browns and Atlanta Falcons.
The move bumps Brunskill back to right guard, where he’ll be more suited for success, helping solidify the offensive line.