3. San Francisco 49ers
Current cap space: $13,858,285
Primary free agents: DE Arik Armstead, S Jimmie Ward, WR Emmanuel Sanders, C Ben Garland
San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan still confidently carries no regrets for his play-calling in Super Bowl LIV, but that doesn’t mean those questions are going away. Shanahan also says that he has complete confidence in quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, which is going to be a tough sell. The 49ers gave Garoppolo a five-year, $137.5 million contract in 2018, and though it was front-loaded to absorb a $37 million cap hit in the first year, 2020 presents the 49ers with a $26.6 million hit versus a $4.2 million dead cap balance should the team decide to move on. So, we’re about to find out how legitimate Shanahan’s belief really is. Should Garoppolo progress as the 49ers hope he will, the franchise retains an incredible running game, confident receivers and a top-two defense. Getting back to the Super Bowl and actually winning it is going to be on Garoppolo’s shoulders at some point. We don’t yet know if that is a good thing for the 49ers.