Familiar faces are still available in free agency. Former San Francisco 49ers tight end Ross Dwelley is one such familiar face as he remains unsigned at this point in the offseason.
Will he find a new home or be forced to retire?
Dwelley was signed by San Francisco as an undrafted free agent following the 2018 NFL Draft and proved to be a decent addition. While he only had two catches in his rookie season, from 2019 to 2022, Dwelley had 41 receptions for 492 yards and five touchdowns. Dwelley was a solid second option behind George Kittle for those years.
By 2022, Dwelley was being used less and less. He only had five targets in the 2022 season, so it was a bit of a surprise that the Niners brought the University of San Diego product back in 2023. He only received two targets in 2023, so San Francisco finally moved on from him and he signed with the Atlanta Falcons.
Dwelley's usage did not increase in Atlanta. He only had one catch on one target last season for 5 yards.
If you have been a tight end on the 49ers since 2017 and your name is not Kittle, chances are you have not received a lot of targets. Kittle has been a legendary tight end who is currently on a Hall of Fame trajectory, so it is understandable why he gets the lion's share of the targets at the position.
It has been tough for any backup tight end to break through with Kittle ahead on the depth chart. Some have helped the team in other ways, though. Charlie Woerner proved his worth as a great blocker on San Francisco's offense, and his presence may have been missed last season.
The Niners signed a new backup for Kittle this offseason in Luke Farrell. He does not have many targets in his career, so he is sort of the new Dwelley on the roster.
Dwelley is now 30 years old. Given his lack of usage the last few seasons we will have to see if any teams take a chance on him as a tight end depth piece.
If not, he many be forced to retire and will become a fun bit of trivia for Niners fans looking to prove how hardcore of a fan they are.