3 veteran free agents 49ers can still target on the cheap

49ers low-cost free-agent target No. 1: EDGE Trey Flowers

OK, so former Detroit Lions EDGE Trey Flowers certainly hasn’t looked like the same kind of player he was back during his days with the New England Patriots, and it’s easy to ridicule him for being on the decline after picking up a combined 3.5 sacks over the last two seasons.

Injuries did get in the way, though, and that’s important to point out. Plus, with Flowers turning 29 years old this offseason, it’s not the case of an “over the hill” player looking to squeak out just one more season.

No, Flowers still has something left to prove in the pass-rush department.

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The 49ers have capitalized on one-year prove-it deals for pass-rushers, Kerry Hyder in 2020 and Arden Key in 2021, both of whom used successful campaigns to cash in on bigger deals the following offseason.

Flowers, whom the Niners could use to bolster their pass rush alongside EDGE Nick Bosa, is staring at the reality of not coming close to the massive $90 million deal he received from Detroit back in 2019. After seeing the kind of success both Hyder and Key had over the last two respective years, though, it would be worth a shot trying to prove himself to the league.

A low-cost flier certainly wouldn’t hurt San Francisco, especially if it meant Flowers could resurrect his career.