The 49ers on Thursday announced they’d tendered five of their exclusive rights free agents, including offensive lineman Daniel Brunskill, running back Jeff Wilson Jr., tight end Ross Dwelley, quarterback Nick Mullens, and cornerback Emmanuel Moseley.
Four of the five players were undrafted rookies in 2017, and all five have played pivotal roles during their time in San Francisco. Brunskill was not an undrafted rookie of the 49ers in 2017, but made his way to the club via the Alliance of American Football prior to the 2019 campaign. Andrew Lauderdale was the only ERFA that didn’t earn an a tender.
The reason the players all earn the ‘exclusive rights’ free agent label is because their contracts ended before they could accrue three years of NFL service time. Since they were given the one-year tenders, they won’t be able to negotiate with other teams in the offseason.
Teams typically don’t keep a lot of former UDFAs around, but the 49ers have done a nice job accumulating young assets after the draft.
Wilson has carved out a role as a fourth running back and became the de facto short yardage back when he was active this season. He also scored a game-winning touchdown on a 20-yard reception against the Cardinals in Week 11.
Dwelley stepped in for an injured George Kittle and started two games. He had a pair of touchdown catches in that Week 11 contest Wilson won for San Francisco. He also had a pivotal third-down conversion in the team’s first meeting with the Cardinals in Week 9.
Mullens started eight games during his second season and won three of them. The former UDFA beat out former third-round pick CJ Beathard for the backup job during the 2019 preseason. He’ll likely hold that job again in 2020.
Moseley wound up working his way into a starting role in his third season. First, he stepped in for Ahkello Witherspoon when Witherspoon injured his foot early in the year. Then he took over in Week 17 when Witherspoon was struggling, and did the same again in the divisional playoff win over the Vikings. He wound up starting the NFC championship and the Super Bowl.
Brunskill signed when the AAF folded prior to last season. The tight-end-turned-tackle wound up starting seven games when Mike McGlinchey got hurt, and also saw time at guard and played center during the preseason. There’s a real chance he earns a starting job if he takes a step forward in 2020, and at worst he’ll be a nice depth piece along the offensive front.
The 49ers need to stock up on quality depth at a relatively low cost, and tendering these five ERFAs is an easy way to do that.