The San Francisco 49ers have plenty of former friends (perhaps some frenemies, too) who remain available in free agency. While some of these ex-Niners will probably get scooped up at some point, others could very well decide to retire if no team signs them.
Let’s take a look at five former 49ers who may choose to hang it up.
Jimmy Garoppolo
There have already been rumors swirling about Jimmy Garoppolo’s potential retirement. He’s been a backup for the last few seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, but he’s already made plenty of money in his career and is in his mid-30s, so will he really feel the need to continue his career?
Some team would surely be willing to take him on as a backup, but after the Los Angeles Rams drafted Ty Simpson, that closed a door on a reunion with LA.
If Jimmy G does decide to retire, he’s had a pretty good career, all things considered, even if he was not quite as good as the Niners hoped he’d be when they gave him that big contract.
Raheem Mostert
49ers fans won’t ever forget Raheem Mostert’s amazing performance back in 2020 during the NFC Championship game, but that was a long time ago. He’s now 34 years old as well and is coming off a season in which he had just 104 rushing yards for the Las Vegas Raiders.
It’s doubtful he could be anything more than a practice squad player at this point, so he may be best served by just calling it a career.
Jimmie Ward
Jimmie Ward used to be a very solid safety for the 49ers, but he’s spent the last few seasons with the Houston Texans and has also had some troubling allegations made against him.
He did not play all of 2025 due to injury, so it seems unlikely a team would want to take a chance on him, given all of those factors.
Trent Taylor
Drafted back in 2017 by the 49ers, Trent Taylor has had a way of just sticking around with the team. He departed for a few years but then came back and was a practice squad guy, although he missed all of last season due to injury.
He still hangs out with a lot of the stars on the 49ers, so he may be well-liked enough for the Niners to bring him back, but based on merit, he should probably retire since he hasn’t made an impact in the NFL for quite a while.
Eric Kendricks
The 49ers were lucky to scoop up veteran linebacker Eric Kendricks last season with their injury troubles at that position. He played quite well, especially in the team’s playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles, but he’s age 34 and no team was willing to sign him last offseason, so he may be forced to face reality and retire.
It’s sad when a player has to call it quits, and all five of these guys made an impact in a 49ers uniform, but the sun eventually sets on every player’s career at some point.
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