Should we lower our expectations for the 49ers?
The San Francisco 49ers have confused most of the national media with their moves during free agency. By ushering out players from a six-win season and relying heavily on veterans who will likely contribute on special teams, the Niners are all in on developing the young talent they land in the NFL Draft.
There are question marks on the roster with a month to go until the draft, so it’s easy to look at San Francisco today and wonder if they’ll land multiple starters — or whether that’s a good idea.
Because of that logic and the season the Niners are coming off of, skepticism about the immediate future has followed. ESPN analysts were asked to name one team that’s taken a step backward, and the 49ers were popular for the wrong reasons, as they were the only team selected multiple times during this exercise:
Matt Bowen, NFL analyst: The San Francisco 49ers. With quarterback Brock Purdy set to cash in on a new deal, Kyle Shanahan’s team had to move on from core players. The 49ers said goodbye to Deebo Samuel Sr., Dre Greenlaw, Talanoa Hufanga and more. However, the 49ers could make a trade with Philadelphia for edge rusher Bryce Huff, who had 10 sacks in 2023 for the Jets under new Niners defensive coordinator Robert Saleh.
Samuel and Greenlaw were undoubtedly core players. Bowen’s point about adding an edge rusher, especially one Saleh is familiar with, could go a long way in upping the talent along the defensive line.
Here’s another excerpt:
Field Yates, NFL analyst: The 49ers. I don’t expect the 49ers’ record to dip again after an injury-riddled 6-11 season in 2024, but this team will have a much different look. The defensive line will be largely reshaped, and the receiver room is guaranteed to look different after the trade of Deebo Samuel Sr. But this offseason did not catch San Francisco off guard: The departures, trades and releases are setting up a substantial raise for quarterback Brock Purdy and a new phase of team building.
Should “different” equate to taking a step backward? That’s the struggle analysts and fans are having. The Deebo many have in mind is the peak, explosive moments from his career and not the player having issues separating or catching the ball.
The players who won’t return can be replaced by rookies at 80 percent of the cost. If San Francisco can gain 80 percent of their production, six wins will turn into ten if the actual core players return to health.