There's likely to be a lot of conjecture over the next few months over the San Francisco 49ers' biggest need going into the offseason.
Wide receiver? Edge rusher? Defensive tackle? Safety?
All of those have their weaknesses and could certainly use a shot in the arm, but the biggest and best thing the Niners could do this offseason is fortify their offensive line.
If it sounds like I've said that before, it's probably because I have. Many, many, many times. Improving the overall talent base of the unit that makes everything "go" on offense seems like a no-brainer.
Unfortunately, that view hasn't quite been shared by the front office, which has generally found itself ignoring the position and patching it with mid-round draft picks and value trades.
However, one move San Francisco could make this offseason would put my complaints to bed... and then some. Better yet, it'd even harken back to 1994 when the franchise went on a spree in free agency with the specific goal of dethroning the Dallas Cowboys, a hated foe who had bested them in a couple of important games (sound familiar?).
I'm talking about the 49ers acquiring Baltimore Ravens pending free-agent center Tyler Linderbaum.
49ers can fortify O-line by signing Tyler Linderbaum
It's hard to think of many places that need upgrading more than the interior of San Francisco's O-line (with the possible exception of the exterior of it), and this would be a real statement of intent to do so, while possibly lifting the play of those around him as well.
His pedigree is unquestioned: Linderbaum is already a three-time Pro Bowler in his young career, and perhaps most importantly for the 49ers, he's been something of an iron man, too, missing only two games in his four-year career.
He'd instantly represent an upgrade over Jake Brendel, who is not only ageing but an average player at best who has frequently had the finger pointed at him over the past couple of years for the O-line's shortcomings.
While it's certainly not all his fault, Brendel is representative of the Niners' poor attitude to line building, and removing him from the roster this offseason would create a $3 million salary-cap saving -- money that could easily go towards his upgrade.
It's unusual for the 49ers to spend big money on the O-line in the Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch era (unless it's on Trent Williams, of course), but one position they have occasionally invested hefty money into along the trench positions has been that of center, with big deals handed out to Weston Richburg and Alex Mack during their tenure.
Ostensibly, this was because center was one of the most important positions in the Shanahan offense, which begs the question why it's been the purview of such a replacement-level player since Mack's retirement in 2022.
Linderbaum would be a huge statement of intent in what could be a key offseason of rebuilding the offense, and the move would not be unlike the Niners' decision to chase Giants center Bart Oates in 1994 free agency, where acquiring the veteran Pro Bowl center allowed them to move Jesse Sapolu to guard and set the tone for an offseason that saw San Francisco build one of their greatest teams of all time to pick up the at-that-time elusive fifth Super Bowl ring.
And when it comes down to it, wouldn't we all like to party like it's 1994 once again?