49ers roster – Page 310 – Syndication Server

Report: 49ers to sign LB Joe Walker

The 49ers added some depth at linebacker with former Cardinals LB Joe Walker.

The 49ers on Monday began their second wave of offseason moves by adding some depth to their linebacking corps. They’re set to sign former Cardinals linebacker Joe Walker according to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero.

Walker joined the NFL as a seventh-round pick of the Eagles in the 2016 draft. He spent his first year in Philadelphia on IR with a torn ACL, then started three of the 12 games he played his second year. The Cardinals signed him off the Eagles’ practice squad the following season and he played 14 games in 2018, and started 11 of 16 games last year.

While the 49ers are set in their starting linebacker group, Walker has a ton of special teams experience and could wind up replacing Elijah Lee, who was non-tendered by San Francisco.

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49ers OL roster battle already developing

The 49ers have a fun roster battle on their hands already.

The 49ers’ list of roster battles during the offseason program and training camp won’t be very long considering they’re returning close to all of their starters on both sides of the ball. One clear position battle is already taking shape along the offensive line.

When San Francisco released right guard Mike Person, it opened up a vacancy on the offensive line with no surefire contingency plan. There’ll be a bona fide battle among several players to win that job.

Perhaps the leading candidate for the starting right guard job, Daniel Brunskill, signed his exclusive rights free agent tender on Friday. The former offensive tackle for the San Diego Fleet of the Alliance of American Football found a home last year in Santa Clara when he filled in at tackle and guard during the regular season, and played some center during the preseason. Brunskill is an impressive athlete with good versatility that could wind up earning him his first NFL starting job.

It won’t be easy for Brunskill though. Ben Garland also re-signed in San Francisco on a one-year deal. He’s another versatile lineman who can play all three interior spots, and earned himself a look with his play at center down the stretch last season filling in for Weston Richburg. There’s a chance the team strictly wants Garland to play center, but if he’s their best option at right guard, they wouldn’t hesitate to start him there and figure out a contingency plan for a Richburg injury later.

The 49ers added another candidate for the right guard job shortly after it was reported Person was gone. Tom Compton, a journeyman offensive lineman who’s been with five teams in his career and spent the last four years with four different teams, will also get a shot at the starting right guard job.

It’s also not out of the question that San Francisco uses a relatively early pick on an interior lineman that pushes all the veterans out of the running. This would probably be the ideal scenario. They’d be snagging a young talent for the offensive line, while allowing players like Brunskill, Garland and Compton to serve as high quality depth pieces.

Either way, having so many capable player up front is part of why the 49ers were able to win 13 games despite four of their five offensive line spots missing multiple games last season. If they can improve that depth after losing a starter in the offseason, the 49ers’ offense will be in great shape to have another good year up front.

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Grading each 49ers offseason move so far

A grade for every move the 49ers have made this offseason.

The 49ers haven’t had a loud free agency, but what they’ve been quietly doing is reconstructing the roster that took them to the Super Bowl last season.

Their two biggest moves both happened the first day the free agent negotiating window opened when they traded DeForest Buckner to the Colts and signed Arik Armstead to a big extension.

Outside of that, their moves haven’t been more than small blips on the larger NFL radar.

We went through all of their moves so far and gave them a grade from a 49ers perspective, because some of the acquisitions that’ll be inconsequential to the rest of the NFL, could wind up being the difference in another deep playoff run for San Francisco.

Re-signed DE Arik Armstead

Armstead was a candidate to get the franchise tag, but instead he inked a five-year, $85 million deal with the 49ers. The structure of the deal gives the team small salary cap hits in each of the first two years, giving them added flexibility to maneuver under the cap.

They also retained a versatile defensive lineman who’s a stout run defender and led the team with 10.0 sacks last season. While Armstead may not be the singularly dominant player DeForest Buckner is (more on him later), he’s still a very good defensive lineman who fits well within the framework of the 49ers’ defensive front. If Armstead continues rushing the passer like he did in 2019, this deal may wind up being a bargain down the line when the cap inflates.

Grade: B+

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Report: 49ers to release OL Mike Person

The 49ers let go of starting right guard Mike Person.

The 49ers on Thursday informed offensive lineman Mike Person that he will be released according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Person, 31, signed with the 49ers prior to the 2018 season and started all 30 games he played, including all 16 in 2018. A neck injury forced him out of two games down the stretch in 2019.

The veteran interior lineman had a $2.5 million cap hit, but the 49ers will incur no dead cap for releasing him after signing him to a three-year deal last offseason.

San Francisco now has a vacancy in their starting offensive line. Internal candidates to fill it are Ben Garland, who signed a one-year deal to return to San Francisco on Wednesday, and Daniel Brunskill who filled in while Person was out last season. The 49ers could also wind up drafting an interior lineman with either of their two first-round picks.

49ers re-sign OT Shon Coleman to 1-year deal

The 49ers added to their offensive line depth by re-signing OL Shon Coleman.

While most of the 49ers’ big moves Monday revolved around the defensive line, the team also announced the re-signing of offensive tackle Shon Coleman to a one-year deal.

Coleman was supposed to be the team’s swing tackle last season, but suffered a dislocated ankle and fractured fibula during the first preseason game and went on season-ending injured reserve.

San Francisco acquired Coleman from the Browns for a seventh-round pick ahead of the 2018 season. He started all 16 games for Cleveland in 2017, but didn’t play at all for the 49ers in 2018, and was injured all of 2019.

With offensive line depth near the top of the team’s offseason needs, re-signing Coleman gives them added flexibility to go along with 2019 sixth-round pick Justin Skule, and journeyman Daniel Brunskill.

The new CBA allows for teams to have eight offensive linemen suited up on game days, so as many quality players at that spot as possible is vital. The 49ers ran into an issue this year where they were missing both starting tackles for several weeks. Left tackle Joe Staley wound up playing just seven games, and right tackle Mike McGlinchey played 12.

Coleman should quickly step into a battle with Skule for the swing tackle job.

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49ers, Arik Armstead agree to long-term deal

The 49ers avoided the franchise tag and signed Arik Armstead to a multi-year contract.

The 49ers’ first big domino of the offseason started to fall Monday when they agreed to a 5-year $85 million deal with defensive lineman Arik Armstead according to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport.

Armstead, 26, was a candidate for the franchise tag that would’ve paid him around $19 million fully guaranteed for one season. He and the team wound up settling on a long-term deal that saves the 49ers some money in the short term while giving Armstead some long-term security.

Last season was Armstead’s best as a pro. He led San Francisco with 10.0 sacks, which is one more than he had in his first four years combined. The 2015 first-round pick was also outstanding again as a run defender in his fifth season. If he keeps combining his run-stopping skill set with something around 10 sacks, he’ll continue to be a valuable member of the 49ers’ defensive line through the duration of his contract.

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Report: 49ers chased TE Austin Hooper in free agency

Austin Hooper is set to be the new highest-paid TE in the NFL, but the 49ers tried to get him before the Browns could.

Austin Hooper has agreed to a deal with the Cleveland Browns that will make him the highest-paid tight end in the NFL according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. The 49ers are involved in this deal in a couple ways.

First, NFL Media’s Mike Silver reported San Francisco was among the teams in on Hooper in free agency.

The 49ers could use some additional tight end depth behind George Kittle, and Hooper has experience with 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan. He was a third-round pick of the Falcons during Shanahan’s final season there as the offensive coordinator. Hooper has since developed into a good blocker with playmaking ability as a pass catcher. He posted career highs across the board last season with 75 catches, 787 yards and six touchdown receptions.

San Francisco’s interest in Hooper gives an indication that they’ll aim to add a tight end either in free agency, the trade market or the draft. Kittle, Ross Dwelley and Daniel Helm are the only tight ends slated to be on the roster. Levine Toilolo saw snaps last season as the third tight end, but he’s an unrestricted free agent.

The second way this impacts the 49ers is by resetting the market for tight ends. Kittle is entering the final year of his rookie contract and is eligible this offseason for an extension. He was already set to receive the highest contract ever for a tight end, and now Hooper offers a new target for Kittle and his agents as they negotiate a long-term deal to keep the All-Pro in San Francisco.

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Emmanuel Moseley, Dre Greenlaw got nice bonuses strong 2019 seasons

The NFL’s Performance-Based Pay program hooked Dre Greenlaw and Emmanuel Moseley up.

The 49ers had a pair of players receive performance-based bonuses from the NFL’s Performance-Based Pay program used to compensate players who out-perform their contracts. Linebacker Dre Greenlaw and cornerback Emmanuel Moseley both got nice payouts under the league’s program.

According to NFL communications, Greenlaw earned an additional $339,981 from the Performance-Based Pay program. Moseley netted an extra $500,519 thanks to the performance pay program and the veteran pool, which is money not available to players with zero accrued NFL seasons.

Greenlaw earned the 14th-highest total in performance-based pay thanks to taking on a starting role out of camp. The 2019 fifth-round pick was the Sam linebacker and only on the field when the 49ers were in their base defense, but he moved to Will linebacker after Kwon Alexander got hurt. With Alexander out, Greenlaw posted big-time snap counts while performing at a high level.

Moseley wasn’t a rookie, but the third-year former undrafted free agent wound up playing a key role in the 49ers’ playoff run. His bonus was the 17th-highest among the combined performance-based and veteran pool distributions. He jumped into a starting spot when Ahkello Witherspoon went down with a foot injury in Week 3. He eventually lost the starting job when Witherspoon returned, but wound up taking over when Witherspoon faltered down the stretch.

San Francisco entered the year with a significant question mark at corner, but Moseley did a fine job and looks like he’ll have the inside track for a starting job next season.

Players like Moseley and Greenlaw helped provide the essential depth that pushed the 49ers over the hump and into the Super Bowl, and they got a nice extra sum of money for their efforts.

49ers shouldn’t have to worry about kicking game next year

The 49ers ran into a minor issue early in their 2019 season. While everything else was going right for the team, veteran kicker Robbie Gould was having the worst year of his career. If the duration of the 2019 season tells us anything though, that …

Gould by Week 7 last season had a career-worst seven missed field goals. He missed one in each of the first two weeks, three in Week 5, and another one each in Weeks 6 and 7.

It looked like a long holdout had an adverse effect on what was one of the league’s most accurate kickers the previous two seasons. And perhaps an offseason-long battle that started with Gould getting the franchise tag and refusing to sign it before eventually getting a multi-year deal to stay in Santa Clara did impact the then 36-year-old.

There may have been something else at play though. San Francisco cycled through three different long snappers last year before the return of Kyle Nelson from a 10-game suspension that started late in the 2018 campaign.

Colin Holba, who took over for Nelson in 2018, handled the first two games of the 2019 season. Jon Condo stepped in for Week 3, but retired before he could suit up for another game. That opened the door for Garrison Sanborn, who took over for the final three weeks of Nelson’s suspension.

Gould went 12-for-19 on field goal tries while those three long snappers cycled through.

Nelson’s return in Week 8 at home against the Panthers prompted a massive turnaround for Gould. He finished the regular season 11-of-12 on field goals, with his lone miss coming on a 51-yard attempt in sloppy, rainy, windy conditions in Baltimore. Gould was also a perfect seven-for-seven in the postseason.

It may have been a coincidence, but Gould’s 18-for-19 to finish the year with Nelson doing the snapping makes it appear as though the long snapper played an instrumental role. With no suspensions due for Nelson leading into 2020, he’s slated to be the long snapper for the entire season.

Gould is entering the second year of his four-year deal that includes team options in the final two seasons. A strong 2020 season could be the difference in whether the 49ers keep the long-time veteran, or go on a kicker search next offseason. If Nelson was actually the answer to Gould’s woes, San Francisco should be set at kicker for the next couple seasons.

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What positions 49ers don’t need to address in offseason

The 49ers have limited free agent and nfl draft resources, so they can skip addressing a few positions.

The 49ers find themselves in a precarious position this offseason. They’re low on draft capital with limited salary cap space to work with. However, they don’t have an ample list of needs to address on their roster that went to the Super Bowl last season.

Limited offseason resources means the 49ers have to be diligent about what areas of their roster they address. They have several pending free agents like Arik Armstead, Jimmie Ward and Emmanuel Sanders that they’ll aim to re-sign, but larger moves beyond that may not be feasible.

We went through the 49ers’ roster and picked out some positions they can afford to avoid this offseason:

Quarterback

While talk of the 49ers’ quarterback situation has dominated offseason headlines, the position is not one the team needs to address this offseason. Jimmy Garoppolo is going into the offseason fully healthy and coming off a 13-3 season capped with a Super Bowl trip. Backups Nick Mullens and CJ Beathard are fine in an emergency situation. Despite talk of Garoppolo’s future with the team, they don’t need to add anyone in free agency or the draft.

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