The San Francisco 49ers seemingly can never go through an offseason without some kind of contract drama or speculation. This one had the looming specter of what quarterback Brock Purdy's second contract would look like, before the Friday evening (Eastern time) when news of a five-year, $265 million deal came.
Prior to Purdy's new deal, and of course prior to the teeth of OTAs later this month, the Niners also got a contract extension done with tight end George Kittle. The 49ers front office has clearly (finally) learned that big contracts don't get cheaper the longer you wait, and it's better to try to set a bar than react to an ever-rising bar that'll be set elsewhere.
For better or worse, San Francisco's reduction in cash spending this offseason was clearly in deference to Purdy's looming new contract.
Now that that deal is done, other business can be put into focus.
49ers' next contract extension to get done couldn't be more obvious
After the news of Purdy's new contract came, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler concisely pointed to the next player the 49ers have on their agenda for a contract extension:
The #49ers, quite clearly, wanted to handle business as to avoid the drama of last year's contrract holdouts. This allows Purdy to enter OTAs with long-term security.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) May 16, 2025
Next on the docket for San Fran: Fred Warner.
On SportsCenter Saturday morning, after talking about Purdy's contract, Fowler elaborated on that point.
"Right now everybody's happy, but they have to do something with Fred Warner," Fowler said. "Star linebacker, probably the best in the game. Only 28 years old. He's got really big cap hits the next two years, $29 million and $27 million. So they wanna rework his deal, maybe extend him...."
#49ers and Brock Purdy get win-win - and a drama-free offseason
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) May 17, 2025
League owners meetings - what the playoff reseeding proposal means@SportsCenter with @shaepeppler pic.twitter.com/VIWI40RG6Y
Warner is undeniably the heart and soul of San Francisco's defense, and by most accounts he's the best off-ball linebacker in the league. He does not miss time (one game missed in seven seasons), and he's been a first-team All-Pro in four of the last five seasons with no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
Warner has two years left on the five-year, $95 million deal he signed in 2021, with (as Fowler mentioned) cap hits of $29.2 million his year and $26.7 million in 2026. Prior to the start of the 49ers' offseason program, Michael Silver of The Athletic reported there hadn't yet been "substantive talks" with Warner's camp about an extension.
Warner, for his part, did not seem too concerned about it when talking to reporters that week.
"I get paid plenty already," Warner said. "But listen, that whole part of it, I know my agent, and the team, and all that, that'll all handle itself out. I'm just, obviously, ready to just go to work and be the best version of myself."
For reference, the highest-paid off-ball linebacker in the NFL right now is Roquan Smith with a five-year, $100 million deal. The Niners will surely give Warner a smidge more than that $20 million average per year in a new deal. Team ownership has reportedly agreed to sell a 6.2 percent stake based on a $8.5 billion total franchise valuation (so around a half a billion dollars in proceeds), so money should be no object on that front.
Kittle got his new contract, and Purdy got his. Warner is clearly next in line, and it may only be a matter of time before his new deal is done too. The 49ers start another phase of OTAs on May 27.