Tag: Javon Hargrave

49ers plan to release former Pro Bowl D-lineman after 2 seasons in SF

The 49ers’ plan is to release Javon Hargrave.

The San Francisco 49ers overhaul of their defensive line is set to include the release of perhaps their best defensive tackle.

General manager John Lynch on Wednesday in his end-of-season press conference told reporters the 49ers are planning to release DT Javon Hargrave with a post-June 1 designation, though they’re open to bringing him back.

Hargrave played in only three games this season before suffering a season-ending triceps tear.

A recent restructure of his deal made the post-June 1 route a palatable one for San Francisco on the salary cap front. Over the Cap had the details on his restructure in December:

The 49ers reduced Hargrave’s base salary from $19.9 million to $2.1 million, dropping Hargraves salary cap number from $28.105 million to $10.305 million in the process. The original cost to cut Hargrave would have been either $24.86 million on the cap or $28.105 million during free agency if using the June 1. This will allow the team to designate Hargrave as a post June 1 release, count for just $10.3 million on the cap during free agency and then have it drop to and have his cap number count for $8.6 million in 2025 if Hargrave is still hurt and defer $17.485 million to 2026.

While it seems counterintuitive to release a quality defensive lineman in the midst of rebuilding a defensive line, this is the reality of the 49ers’ salary cap situation. They’re going to have to cut ties with some good players and it appears that’s what they’re set to do with Hargrave.

The 49ers signed Hargrave to a four-year, $81 million contract before the 2023 season. He made the Pro Bowl in 2023 and played in 19 games and posted 51 tackles, nine tackles for loss and 8.0 sacks with San Francisco.

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49ers should part ways with $84 million DL in offseason

The 49ers may have to part with some good players this offseason as part of a roster overhaul.

There are a handful of tough calls for the San Francisco 49ers to make in the wake of a disastrous 2024 season.

This year was one that may push the 49ers to make wholesale changes to their roster in hopes of re-opening a new Super Bowl window after the window with this year’s group appeared to close in a blaze of injuries, special teams woes and red-zone issues.

One of the biggest changes they can make is along the defensive line where parting with defensive tackle Javon Hargrave may become a necessary move for salary cap purposes.

Hargrave signed a four-year, $84 million deal in the 2023 offseason and never quite hit the level of game-wrecker the 49ers hoped he would be. He did have a terrific Week 3 game vs. the Los Angeles Rams this season, but he also suffered a triceps tear in that contest that ended cut his season short.

The 49ers need an overhaul on the defensive line and letting the 31-year-old walk ahead of his Age 32 season is a step the team can take in revamping a defensive position group that, bluntly, hasn’t been good enough the last two years.

Signing Hargrave was supposed to help the 49ers replicate some of the success they had along the defensive front in the 2019 season. While the veteran defensive tackle was productive as a pass rusher with 72 pressures and nine sacks in 22 games (including the postseason) per Pro Football Focus, he wasn’t a particularly effective run defender and he didn’t make life much easier on the rest of the defensive line.

Hargrave’s release would cost the 49ers $24.86 million in dead cap next year, while saving them $3.245 million and opening a spot on the defensive line for a younger player to get snaps. Not to mention the additional $3 million in cap savings will be significant for a team that will have to carefully manage the cap with a sizable contract likely due soon for quarterback Brock Purdy.

They could also designate him as a post-June 1 cut where his dead cap number would fall to $7.375 million and the savings would leap to $20.73 million.

There’s still something in the tank for Hargrave who can still be productive on a good defensive line. The 49ers are just in a place now where the cap savings of cutting him may outweigh the reward of keeping him in red and gold for another season.

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49ers place 2 on season-ending IR, sign DE to active roster

Tons of roster moves for the 49ers.

The San Francisco 49ers announced a slew of roster moves Saturday ahead of their Week 4 matchup with the New England Patriots.

Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave and linebacker Curtis Robinson were both placed on IR after suffering season-ending injuries.

Hargrave tore his triceps in the 49ers’ Week 3 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. Robinson, a reserve and key special teams contributor tore his ACL during Thursday’s practice.

The 49ers had three open roster spots after placing that pair on IR. They filled one of those spots by promoting defensive end Sam Okuayinonu to the active roster from the practice squad. Okuayinonu posted the first full sack of his career in Week 3 when he was up on a standard practice squad elevation. He figures to be a key piece of the 49ers’ defensive line rotation, and he may even see time rushing from the interior.

Two players were also elevated from the practice squad for Sunday’s game.

Undrafted rookie defensive tackle Evan Anderson will make his NFL debut, beating out veterans T.Y. McGill and Shakel Brown for the one-week roster spot. He’ll get playing time as a run stopper on the interior.

The other elevation is another undrafted rookie. Safety Jaylen Mahoney will make his NFL debut. He gives the 49ers added depth at safety with Talanoa Hufanga officially listed as questionable after rolling his ankle in practice on Friday.

Kickoff between the 49ers and Patriots is slated for 1:05pm Pacific Time from Levi’s Stadium.

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Kyle Shanahan hints at potential schematic shakeup for 49ers defense

Could the 49ers’ personnel force them to make big-time schematic changes on defense?

There may be significant change coming for the San Francisco 49ers’ struggling defense.

Since Week 2 we’ve seen the 49ers mix up their personnel to try and help that unit. Rookie defensive backs Malik Mustapha and Renardo Green have gotten some run. Second-year linebacker Dee Winters saw time in De’Vondre Campbell’s Will LB spot in Week 3 before exiting with an ankle injury.

Now a bigger alteration could be on the horizon following defensive tackle Javon Hargrave’s injury. His absence leaves a sizable hole in an already thin defensive line, and the 49ers may not have the personnel to make up for his absence in the current iteration of their defense.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan on Wednesday in a press conference indicated Hargrave’s season-ending triceps tear may act as a catalyst for some scheme changes.

“I thought our D-Line last week affected the quarterback the most that they had in their three games,” Shanahan said. “I thought that they had one of their better games. But it’s a huge loss, losing Javon. Guys are going to have to step it up and when you don’t have the rush, then you’ve got to turn to other things schematically.”

The number of players the 49ers can realistically rely on to ‘step up’ in Hargrave’s absence is small. Defensive end Nick Bosa will need to look more like a Defensive Player of the Year. DE Leonard Floyd will need to look more like he has the past four seasons. The entire defensive tackle rotation will need to be better. It’s going to be a group effort, but it’s hard to imagine the 49ers are going to affect the quarterback at the rate their current scheme requires.

Perhaps the club experiments some with a 3-4 defensive front. That’s something assistant head coach Brandon Staley has done during his career as a defensive coordinator and head coach.

They may have to alter things in the secondary as well changing when and how much they run zone coverages vs. man coverages.

Whatever it winds up being, all the possibilities have to be on the table for the 49ers. They weren’t playing championship-level defense to start the year even with Hargrave in the mix. Now they have to figure out how to do it without him, and that just might require San Francisco to make big changes in how its defense operates.

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49ers 1st Week 4 practice report highlights depth of injury woes

The 49ers practice participation report for Wednesday isn’t super fun.

The San Francisco 49ers’ injury situation isn’t getting better as the club prepares to face the New England Patriots in Week 4.

Their practice participation report featured a host of big-time names on top of the key players who are already slated to miss the contest.

Wide receiver Deebo Samuel was among the non-participants. He’s on track to miss a second consecutive game because of a calf injury. Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave was also a non-participant after suffering a partial triceps tear against the Rams. He’s expected to go on season-ending IR soon.

The good news is quarterback Brock Purdy was a full go after dealing with back soreness following Week 3. Cornerback Charvarius Ward, who was questionable against the Los Angeles Rams with knee and hamstring injuries, wasn’t present on the report.

Here’s what Wednesday’s practice participation looked like:

Did not participate

DT Javon Hargrave (triceps)
WR Deebo Samuel (calf)
LT Trent Williams (illness)
LB Dee Winters (ankle)

Any time Williams is out it’s worth taking note of. Ideally his illness won’t hold him out of Sunday’s game. The other news here is that Winters is out. He returned in Week 3 from a preseason ankle injury, then quickly re-aggravated that ankle on the Rams’ fake punt. Winters could have a key role in the 49ers’ defense once he’s healthy.

Limited participation

TE George Kittle (hamstring)

A limited session is better than nothing for the All-Pro tight end. He was initially doubtful for Week 3 before getting ruled out Saturday. That the team didn’t immediately rule him out on Friday’s injury report is a good sign for his availability this week, but his status the rest of the week will give us a clearer picture.

Full participation

QB Brock Purdy (back)

It didn’t sound like this would be a huge issue when Shanahan announced it during Monday’s conference call. However, back injuries can be tricky so getting confirmation that Purdy was a full go is a good sign.

49ers add familiar face on defensive line to practice squad

The 49ers added a player to their practice squad as the hunt for a Javon Hargrave replacement begins.

The San Francisco 49ers filled the empty spot on their practice squad on Wednesday.

Defensive lineman Shakel Brown is returning to San Francisco to join their practice squad a day after the club released veteran safety Tracy Walker III.

Brown was with the 49ers in camp and had a nice preseason. His return gives the team additional internal depth to help replace defensive tackle Javon Hargrave who is out for the season following a partial triceps tear in Week 3.

San Francisco added Brown in the offseason and he spent time with them in training camp and the preseason. He played 72 snaps across the 49ers’ three preseason contests. Brown was let go at final cuts.

He’s also been with the Tennessee Titans and has yet to make his NFL debut.

This signing gives the 49ers a trio of interior defensive linemen on their practice squad. Brown joins veteran T.Y. McGill and undrafted rookie Evan Anderson as potential Hargrave replacements.

It’ll be interesting to see how the 49ers manage that group. They may permanently elevate a player, but they could opt to rotate through them with standard practice squad elevations to see which player fits best on the defensive front.

Figuring out how to fill the void left by Hargrave is now atop the 49ers’ to-do list on defense, and now they have another internal option.

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49ers plummet in power rankings as injuries sink season

The 49ers are plummeting in power rankings, and it’s hard to argue against the fall.

The San Francisco 49ers are in the midst of an early season swoon.

While losses in Weeks 2 and 3 are far from season-ending blows, the nature of the 49ers’ 2024 campaign so far indicates that things may never turn around for them following a third consecutive deep playoff run.

A good indicator of where the 49ers season has gone is where they land in the USA TODAY power rankings where they’ve careened out of the top 10 following their losses to the Vikings and Rams.

Via USA TODAY’s Nate Davis:

Injuries are generally the only factor which have undercut Kyle Shanahan’s teams – in the regular season – and, boy, are they piling up. DT Javon Hargrave (triceps) is now out for the year, while QB Brock Purdy is dealing with a balky back and the first dip below .500 in his career. When RB Christian McCaffrey (Achilles) returns remains anyone’s guess.

It’s hard to push back on the analysis from Davis because it appears the only thing that would turn the 49ers’ season around is a dramatic shift in their health situation.

There are certainly other areas they could improve. Their pass rush hasn’t been good enough, but Hargrave’s injury won’t help in that area. They need more from All-Pro WR Brandon Aiyuk as well. San Francisco’s struggling defense could also use a shakeup in its starting lineup.

All of that would be helpful, but as long as players like George Kittle, Deebo Samuel and McCaffrey are missing games, it’s nigh impossible to paint the 49ers as a top 10 NFL club, much less a Super Bowl contender.

The good news is there’s a long way to go in the 18-week season and the necessary improvements are clear. It’s just a matter of whether they can facilitate those improvements before time in their long season runs too short.

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NFC West Watch: more brutal injury news for 49ers

NFC West Watch: more brutal injury news for 49ers

The Seattle Seahawks’ primary rivals, the San Francisco 49ers, are off to a tough start this year. Their campaign to defend their conference championship has hit a few snags already, and we aren’t even a month into the season. The biggest issue facing San Francisco so far has been their overall health, which has their roster looking closer to being a skeleton crew than it does a juggernaut.

When healthy, we know how lethal the 49ers offense can look. Unfortunately for them, they haven’t been able to field everyone. In San Francisco’s Week 3 loss to the Rams, they were without wide receiver Deebo Samuel (calf) and tight end George Kittle (hamstring), which is already on top of them not having star running back Christian McCaffrey – who was placed on Injured Reserve on September 14th.

Now, ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting more bad news for McCaffrey, who is apparently seeking a specialist all the way in Germany for his Achilles tendinitis.

The news regarding McCaffrey from Schefter followed two other bits of equally troubling injury updates for the 49ers. Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave suffered a partial triceps tear, and as a result is likely out for the remainder of the season. Losing Hargrave is a massive blow to San Francisco’s incredibly talented defensive line.

Of course, the 49ers’ injury woes would not be complete without bad news surrounding their quarterback. Schefter also announced Brock Purdy is dealing with back soreness, making him day-to-day as the team gears up for their Week 4 game against New England. Of course, one can’t help but to make the joke about his back being sore from carrying this team, because Purdy certainly did so in Week 3. I’ve been as tough on Purdy as anyone, but even I will give him credit for his solid play thus far.

Regardless, San Francisco is in a world of hurt right now… both literally and figuratively. They are 1-2 following two-straight losses. One where they were bullied by Minnesota, and one where they blew it against an even more depleted Rams team. The 49ers should be fine against the Patriots no matter who suits up, but from there the road back to the Super Bowl is starting to look a little more treacherous for them.

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Banged-up 49ers lose Javon Hargrave; Brock Purdy day-to-day

Injuries are piling on the San Francisco 49ers

The injuries continue to decimate the San Francisco 49ers.

Defensive lineman Javon Hargrave is likely lost for the season with a partially torn triceps.

Heading into the Week Four game against the New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium, quarterback Brock Purdy is listed as day-to-day with back soreness.

Tight end George Kittle missed the loss to the Los Angeles Rams with a hamstring injury. Wideout Deebo Samuel is sideline with a calf injury and star running back Christian McCaffrey is on IR with Achilles tendinitis.

McCaffrey traveled to Germany to see a specialist about his injury problem.

Former Eagles DT Javon Hargrave to miss remainder of 49ers season with a torn triceps

Former Eagles DT Javon Hargrave to miss remainder of 49ers season with a torn triceps

Another former Eagles defender will miss the remainder of the 2024 NFL season.  Raiders safety Marcus Epps suffered a torn ACL on Sunday, and now, 49ers defensive tackle Javon Hargrave will see his season end after a triceps tear sustained in Sunday’s loss to the Rams.

Hargrave joined the 49ers in free agency after the Eagles Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs, signing a four-year, $84 million deal.

Hargrave recorded three tackles, including a sack, in Sunday’s loss. The defensive tackle logged four tackles during San Francisco’s first two games.

During his first year with the Niners, Hargrave logged 44 tackles (25 solo), including 7.0 sacks, and two passes defensed across 16 regular-season appearances in 2023.

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