3 pending free agents 49ers won’t bring back in 2022
By Peter Panacy
No. 2: 49ers Left Guard Laken Tomlinson
Unlike Jaquiski Tartt, left guard Laken Tomlinson has been the model of consistency and availability ever since joining the Niners via a trade at the very beginning of the 2017 season, starting every game for the team over the last three years.
While there’s not necessarily anything flashy or outstanding about Tomlinson, he’s been about as reliable as they come and certainly wasn’t a primary reason behind San Francisco’s offensive line struggles a year ago.
Considering interior linemen rarely command as much money as tackles like Trent Williams, why would the 49ers avoid inking Tomlinson, 29 years old, to a new deal in 2022?
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This has more to do with the team’s actions during the offseason than anything else.
In Round 2 of the NFL Draft, the Niners selected Notre Dame guard Aaron Banks, who’ll compete with the low-cost veteran, Daniel Brunskill, for the starting right guard spot. Brunskill, a restricted free agent in 2022, is going to be a cheaper re-sign for San Francisco, and Banks is going to be playing on his affordable rookie contract over the next four years anyway.
If both Banks and Brunskill wind up performing well this season in whatever roles they have, Tomlinson essentially becomes an excess commodity.
Tomlinson’s deal is voided in 2022, so the proverbial “writing on the wall” could be there anyway.