The San Francisco 49ers are in an awkward phase as a franchise. San Francisco only won six games during the 2024 season and finished last in the NFC West division standings. They also missed the playoffs for the first time since the 2020 season. Now the 49ers’ front office is teasing big moves to come after last week’s roster purge.
49ers general manager John Lynch explained that San Francisco made moves during the first week of NFL free agency with the future in mind. He teased that there are ‘some big things coming’ soon for the 49ers.
“The bottom line is you’re always looking at years out (from now),” Lynch said via The Athletic’s Matt Barrows. “And we forecast it, and we’ve got some big things coming our way. And you have to clear the requisite room to be able to do that. And you don’t want to get to a point where you have to do things to keep your roster afloat. You want to have that flexibility.”
Lynch is most likely alluding to a potential contract extension for quarterback Brock Purdy.
Mr. Irrelevant himself enters 2025 on the final year of his rookie contract. The 49ers are determined to keep him around, setting a soft deadline to get a deal done in April.
It will be interesting to see if the 49ers and Purdy can meet that soft deadline. Otherwise, negotiations may drag deep into the summer.
Insider believes 49ers ‘hit’ their free agency goals despite roster purge
One 49ers insider echoed Lynch’s comments, suggesting that San Francisco accomplished what it wanted during the first week of NFL free agency.
ESPN’s Nick Wagoner explained in a recent article that the 49ers wanted to clear their books before refocusing around their younger players.
“As strange as it might sound, yes,” Wagoner wrote on Wednesday. “The 49ers’ main objective in this cycle was to clear the books of bad contracts and begin resetting the roster around their remaining core, even if it meant eating a league-leading $85 million in dead money.”
The 49ers made a flurry of moves last week.
They traded away Deebo Samuel to the Commanders, which will create some cap space in the future. San Francisco also purged several defensive veterans including Javon Hargrave, Maliek Collins, and Leonard Floyd.
Finally, they let both Dre Greenlaw and Talanoa Hufanga walk during free agency. Oddly enough, both landed with the Denver Broncos.
The youth movement is has truly started in San Francisco. Now the pressure is on John Lynch to add more talent during the 2025 NFL Draft.
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