The 49ers face some tough challenges in NFL free agency this offseason, but it’s almost a guarantee they won’t retain these five players in 2022.
While nowhere near as extreme as the NFL free agency challenges the San Francisco 49ers faced entering the 2021 offseason, general manager John Lynch nevertheless has some tough choices to make with regards to players whose contracts are expiring when the league’s new year kicks off in March of 2022.
One could make the argument nose tackle D.J. Jones and left guard Laken Tomlinson are the top two priorities of the 34 pending free agents this offseason, and both of those players have proven to be vital to the Niners’ success over the last three years.
But, according to Over the Cap, San Francisco has just over $5 million in projected cap space for the year.
True, a substantial amount could be added if the team indeed parts ways with quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, which is expected to happen and would free up more than $25 million in added space.
Nevertheless, part of managing that cap space would involve Lynch and Co. fully bidding farewell to these five free agents who won’t be back with the 49ers in 2022.
49ers free agent No. 5: Wide receiver Travis Benjamin
Head coach Kyle Shanahan has always put a priority on speedy players, and the thought in 2020 when the Niners added veteran wide receiver Travis Benjamin to the fray was he’d provide a deep-threat option who could stretch the field vertically.
Except Benjamin opted out of the pandemic-impacted 2020 season, then reverted to being almost an afterthought in 2021.
Sure, Benjamin saw some scant field time over the course of the season, playing in 10 games and providing some effort on special teams. Yet he caught none of his five targets, saw only 40 offensive snaps (less than four percent) and wasn’t much of an X-factor on special teams.
The emergence of wide receivers Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk means San Francisco is set atop the depth chart, while two-year pro Jauan Jennings has all but solidified the No. 3 spot on the depth chart, pointing to the idea the 32-year-old Benjamin will be the lowest of low re-sign priorities the 49ers have this offseason.
49ers free agent No. 4: Defensive lineman Maurice Hurst
It’s a bit of a shame the Niners never got to see what 26-year-old defensive tackle Maurice Hurst could do amid a stacked defensive line over the course of 2021.
Hurst, who was somewhat surprisingly jettisoned from the Las Vegas Raiders last offseason, ended up having a strong training camp and flashed some promising abilities that suggested he’d made an impact as part of San Francisco’s D-line rotation.
Except a calf injury early in the year completely thwarted Hurst’s chances of doing so, and that injury ultimately limited him to just two regular-season games on the year.
Hurst was a regular member of the weekly inactive list when he wasn’t dangling on injured reserve, and he only ended up seeing 41 defensive snaps in that brief action anyway. And in light of his absence, the 49ers D-line still ended up being one of the team’s best defensive units, suggesting he’ll be quite expendable during the offseason.
If the Niners are able to re-sign D.J. Jones, while also honing in on the development of other interior linemen like Javon Kinlaw and Kevin Givens, Hurst will be of little value to San Francisco heading into 2022 and will likely need to seek employment elsewhere.
49ers free agent No. 3: Cornerback Josh Norman
The 49ers exceeded expectations in 2021, making it all the way to the NFC Championship game. But there’ll nevertheless be plenty of blame for why the Niners didn’t perform better, and the issues at cornerback are going to be fully explored heading into 2022.
As such, one of the likely scapegoats for San Francisco’s woes in the secondary will be veteran cornerback Josh Norman, who fairly or not, will receive a lot of blame for underperformance over the course of the year.
Norman was an emergency free-agent signing early in 2021, only forced into the fray as a starter because of injuries.
No longer one of the NFL’s top cornerbacks, Norman’s team-high seven defensive penalties on the season highlighted the risk factor the 49ers took in placing him on the field, and the fact opposing quarterbacks were posting a 110.6 passer rating with four touchdowns thrown when targeting him ultimately influenced the team’s decision to bench him.
The Niners’ situation at cornerback remains unresolved, but it’s safe to assume whatever their solutions are during the offseason won’t end up including Norman.
49ers free agent No. 2: Cornerback Jason Verrett
One of the reasons why Josh Norman was pushed into a prominent role last season was because of San Francisco losing its No. 1 cornerback, Jason Verrett, to a season-ending ACL injury way back in Week 1.
It was devastating, and one can feel terrible for Verrett, who enjoyed a relatively injury-free 2020 campaign with the 49ers and certainly played at a Pro Bowl level despite not receiving the accolade.
Yet the Niners can be blamed for hinging too much hope on Verrett staying healthy last season. After all, Verrett had appeared in just six regular-season games between 2016 and 2019 because of various injuries, and the likelihood of him being beset by another serious setback was already high entering 2021.
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The injury was extremely unfortunate for Verrett, who’ll turn 31 years old by the time the next season begins, as his 2021 contract was a prove-it kind of deal.
Sadly, Verrett couldn’t prove he could stay healthy, and it’s hard to fathom another team giving him a lofty deal in 2022 despite all his on-field talents.
49ers free agent No. 1: Running back Raheem Mostert
Jason Verrett wasn’t the only high-profile player San Francisco lost in Week 1.
Running back Raheem Mostert, the player so vital to the team’s Super Bowl run during the 2019 season, went down with a knee injury during the 49ers’ Week 1 win over the Detroit Lions, and not long thereafter, he elected to undergo season-ending surgery to put himself in a better position to return in 2022.
This led, however, to the emergence of Niners rookie tailback Elijah Mitchell, who set a franchise record for a first-year player with 963 rush yards over just 11 games played.
There are some arguments to re-sign Mostert this offseason. Mitchell was frequently injured, and San Francisco hasn’t received the kind of production expected out of fellow 2021 rookie Trey Sermon. Veteran runner Jeff Wilson Jr. is a restricted free agent, while running back JaMycal Hasty is a gadget player at best.
Mostert does know the system, too, but he also comes with a notable injury history and will turn 30 years old by the time the 2022 season starts.
While the 49ers haven’t been shy about paying running backs good money, the realistic bet would be them showing Mostert the door this offseason and opting for other options instead.