The 49ers are freeing up some additional salary cap space. ESPN’s Field Yates on Saturday reported San Francisco restructured defensive end Dee Ford’s contract and converted part of his base salary into a signing bonus to open an additional $9.5 million in cap space.
Ford was dealt by Kansas City to the 49ers in 2018 where he signed a five-year, $85.5 million contract. He was set to count for $15.9 million against the cap this season, so a $9.5 million reduction drops his 2020 hit to $6.4 million. That extra room puts the 49ers at just over $18 million in available space according to Over the Cap.
There’s a couple of reasons San Francisco may have wanted to free up that cap space this year.
The first reason could be the team wants to emerge as real contenders for free agent defensive end Jadeveon Clowney. The Titans and Saints have been the two major contenders for the former first-overall pick, and 49ers general manager John Lynch on Bay Area radio Friday said the team was out of money when asked if Clowney was a possibility.
If they are going to use this money to chase the three-time Pro Bowler, it may take close to all of it with two other teams in the running.
Another possible reason floated on Twitter by Chris Biderman of the Sacramento Bee is the team wants to extend left tackle Trent Williams right away. He’s set to play on a one-year deal worth $12.5 million with $6.25 million guaranteed this year. San Francisco had a host of other financial hurdles to clear when they traded for Williams on Day 3 of this year’s draft, plus he hadn’t played in over a year, so they didn’t extend him right away. Reports from camp say Williams’ play has been excellent, so the club may want to lock him up long-term when they have some financial flexibility before the cap plummets next year.
With roster cuts looming Saturday at 1:00 pm, the 49ers front office could be busy in the lead up to their season opener.