You all know by now that our beloved 49ers lost to the
Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl on Groundhog’s Day. You also know that a combination of the team
shooting itself in the foot and the type of poor officiating which had not been
seen since Roethlisberger’s first Super Bowl crowning was the reason for this loss. But it’s time to let that go and have the
past be the past. Why? Because the 49ers have a considerable number
of decisions to make before the 2020 NFL season begins, a season which will
have the team facing the fourth hardest schedule on paper, so they have no time
for the Super Bowl blues.
In
a previous article, I detailed who the unrestricted free agents (UFAs) were for
the 49ers and whether the front office should keep them or let them walk. I plan to expound on some of that for this
article, but I will also be updating my current view on what the 49ers should
do with each UFA, along with providing a game plan of what needs to be done in
order for the team to get back to the Super Bowl and quench’s the Faithful’s thirst
for a sixth title.
Replace Joe Woods.
The
49ers have lost a key figure to the secondary’s success during the past season
with the Cleveland Browns naming Joe Woods as their new defensive backs (DB) coach. However, this vacancy may not be for long
because of two former defensive backs coaches that have recently hit the market. One is Steve Wilks, who was the Carolina
Panthers’ DB coach from 2014-2016 before a one-year stint as the Panthers
defensive coordinator, followed by another year-long stint as the Arizona
Cardinals head coach, and then his short stay as the defensive coordinator of
the Cleveland Blahs Browns.
But
the other guy, Kris Richards, maybe the better option to pair with Saleh; while
he was with the Dallas Cowboys, he ran a system that is similar to what the 49ers
ran in 2019. Richards is also a
no-nonsense coach who could help Witherspoon and Moseley take the next step needed
for one or each one to become a capable starting NFL cornerback.
(UPDATE): While I was working on this, I stumbled onto an
article from Kyle Posey of ninersnation.com detailing that the 49ers
interviewed former Dolphins DB coach Tony Oden.
I am not sure how I feel about the 49ers potentially hiring Oden to
replace Joe Woods. On the one hand, Oden
has coached three secondaries which finished in the top five for interceptions in
the 2013, 2014, and 2017 seasons. On the
other hand, the Dolphins secondary was rated the worst of 2019 by PFF.
Personally,
I think Richards would be the better choice of the three.
Cut WR Marquise Goodwin
and OG Mike Person.
Goodwin
is a player you want to root for because of the personal tragedies he and his
wife has faced during his tenure with the 49ers, but the production on the
field does not even come close to matching the nearly $5 million salary hit the
49ers will take if Goodwin remains on the roster. Why pay a player who was essentially
eliminated from having any type of role on the offense when the 49ers traded
for Emmanuel Sanders? The writing
appears to be on the wall.
Unlike
Goodwin, Person was a starter that never lost his starting role throughout the
season either through an injury or a trade.
He also will only cost the 49ers $2.5 million during the upcoming season.
So
why on earth should the 49ers cut Person?
Because he is horrid in pass protection.
David Lombardi recently posted an article on The Athletic detailing how
bad pass protection was for the 49ers.
In it, Lombardi cited PFF which ranked Person 52nd in terms of
pass-blocking efficiency out of 62 qualifying NFL guards. Yikes.
Granted, OG Laken Tomlinson was ranked 41st, but Person was worse. If the 49ers want to improve their pass
protection so they can open up the offense more and give Garoppolo more time to
throw, then cutting Person should be no problem. That cutting him will result in no dead cap
hit is just a bonus.
Extend TE George Kittle.
Kittle
has become one of the most complete TEs in the league, and the 49ers should
try to get an extension done with him before his price tag becomes too high for
the team to be able to take on. Currently
Kittle is expected to get a contract extension that will be around at least $13
million a year, but there is a possibility that amount could go even higher if TE
Travis Kelce gets a new deal like Adam Teicher from espn.com discussed in his
most recent blog article. Couple this with
the almost certainty of Kittle’s worth increasing even more after the 2020 NFL
season, and it makes sense that the 49ers should get a contract
extension done with Kittle during the offseason.
Extend CB Richard
Sherman.
Most
of the fan base can agree that Sherman did not play well in the Super Bowl
against the Kansas City Chiefs. However,
Sherman has been the consummate leader and best piece of the 49ers secondary since
he joined the team in 2018. Therefore, it
is probably a smart move if the 49ers try to work out an extension with Sherman
which will keep him with the team until after the 2021 or 2022 NFL season. Working out an extension would allow for the 49ers
to keep a top 10 CB on their defense and allow them to find someone to
eventually take over as the best starting option at CB; the 49ers may already have that
guy on the team, but so far Witherspoon has not been instinctive enough, and Moseley
has struggled with savvy receivers.
Have players take a pay
cut or restructure their contract.
The
49ers are expected to have around $20 million in cap space thanks in part to Kwon
Alexander restructuring his contract. But
most of that is probably already earmarked for the 2020 draft class and a new
deal for Kittle. That leaves little room
to extend Buckner, re-sign any of their pending free agents, or add a player or
two from free agency that can help them get back to the Super Bowl. Needless to say, the 49ers have their work
cut out for them if they wish to gain some cap relief.
The
front office can start this process by finding out how Jerick McKinnon wants to
stay with the 49ers. Recently, McKinnon
indicated that he was willing to do whatever it takes to get on the field. Does this include taking a pay cut? If so, then it presents a golden opportunity
for the 49ers to gain back a decent amount of cap space without taking a $4 million
cap hit if McKinnon is released.
DE
Solomon Thomas is someone the 49ers could also ask to take a pay cut. Currently, Thomas is expected to cost almost
$9 million. That is a lot of money for a
player on the defensive line who was not a starter in 2019. Thomas’s stats do little justice in creating
an argument that he is worth that much to the team, so asking him to redo his
contract and take a pay cut sounds like a reasonable request.
As
for a player the 49ers could ask to restructure their contract, the best choice
is Jimmy Garoppolo. The starting 49ers
quarterback is set to earn $26.6 million in 2020, which is a pretty good hit. Asking Garoppolo to shift some of his salary
to signing bonus money which can be distributed throughout the remainder of his
contract would be beneficial to the team.
Some
of the other players whom the 49ers could ask to restructure their contracts
are DE Dee Ford, OT Joe Staley, OG Laken Tomlinson, and CB Ahkello Witherspoon.
Figure out what they have
in WR Dante Pettis and DE Solomon Thomas.
Pettis
and Thomas were expected to be cornerstones by GM John Lynch when he drafted them,
but so far neither player has even come close to that aspiration. Pettis entered the 2019 season as a starter
but lost that role and significant playing time due to his inability to fight
for the contested catches and be an aggressive pass catcher. Meanwhile, Thomas has yet to live up to the
status of being the third pick in the 2017 NFL draft; part of this is due to the
tragedy and depression which beset him through 2018, but it does not change the
reality of Thomas being a backup on the 49ers defensive line. Can Pettis and Thomas finally establish that
they are a fit for the 49ers, or will the team’s patient approach towards the two
end with one or both players getting cut, traded, or asked to take a pay cut?
Re-sign DE/DT Arik
Armstead and let FS Jimmie Ward, WR Emmanuel Sanders, and DE Ronald Blair walk.
In my previous article, I said the
49ers should let Armstead walk while trying to resign Ward, Sanders, and
Blair. But since writing said article, Armstead
and 49ers GM Lynch have both stated they want him back with the 49ers and OLB
Kwon Alexander restructured his contract to give the 49ers an additional $8.1
million in cap space. According to spotrac.com,
this now gives the 49ers almost $20 million in cap space to work with. With the likelihood the 49ers will shed more payroll, it makes all the sense in the world for the 49ers to try to resign a
player who gelled so well in the Wide 9 the 49ers implemented in 2019.
Ward had a fantastic season in 2019, but he has struggled
to stay healthy during his NFL career, and a weak free-agent market and draft
class at the FS position could cause another team to overpay for his services. Ward is an above average safety, but his
overall history does not justify giving him a big contract.
There is no argument that the trade for Sanders upgraded
the passing game, but Sanders will be 33 in March and was the second-best WR on
the team. It is expected that Sanders
will try to go after one last big payday, and while he does fit in Shanahan’s
offense, the 49ers would be better served to address the position through free
agency or the draft.
If Blair can return to the 49ers without costing more
than what the 49ers believe he is worth, then the team should do their best to
resign him due to what he brings as a depth piece on the defensive line. But the ability to sign Blair is dependent on
whether the 49ers re-sign or tag Armstead and extend Buckner or Kittle. Given that choice, the 49ers would most
likely allow Blair to test free agency.
There is my game plan for the 49ers to implement for them
to go back to the Super Bowl in 2020. Do
you agree with it? If not, then what do
you think the 49ers should do?
In my next article, I plan on looking at the free agents the
49ers could sign to help them continue to contend in the NFC West and for the
Super Bowl. Look forward to it!!!
Sources used in creating
this article:
https://theathletic.com/1583426/2020/02/07/after-struggling-to-protect-jimmy-garoppolo-in-the-super-bowl-how-can-the-49ers-improve-their-pass-blocking/ (SUBSCRIPTION NEEDED)
https://www.espn.com/blog/kansas-city-chiefs/post/_/id/27855/kansas-city-chiefs-to-do-list-deals-for-patrick-mahomes-chris-jones-and-more
https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/49ers/jerick-mckinnon-willing-do-whatever-return-49ers-next-season
