The 49ers won’t sign a free agent from every other NFL team, but that doesn’t mean they won’t at least kick tires on all the available talent in this year’s free agent class.
Chances are, given their roster status and salary cap situation, San Francisco won’t be exceedingly active in the open market. They have some signings to make and some holes to fill, but it’s likely their biggest splash will be Nick Bosa’s extension. However, with such a low amount committed to the quarterback position between Trey Lance and Brock Purdy, they could conceivably get greedy and add a big-name free agent.
We went through each team’s free agents and picked out one player the 49ers could target. Some of them are bigger names. Others are smaller names. Others are somewhere in the middle. Okay that’s enough words.
To the players!
Arizona Cardinals: RT Kelvin Beachum
If Mike McGlinchey does exit, Beachum is coming off a strong 11th NFL season. He’ll likely be cheaper than McGlinchey while offering an upgrade in pass protection. His shortcomings as a run blocker may turn him into a backup, but he’d be a high-quality swing tackle worth paying.
Atlanta Falcons: LB Rashaan Evans
Evans has had a pretty disappointing career since being taken in the first round of the 2018 draft by the Titans, but he’s a good athlete who could offer some competition at the Sam LB spot if Azeez Al-Shaair walks in free agency.
Baltimore Ravens: DE Jason Pierre-Paul
The last two seasons have been rough for the 34-year-old veteran, but landing on the 49ers’ defensive front in a pass rush specialist role could allow him to rekindle some of the dominance that helped define the early part of his career.
Buffalo Bills: QB Case Keenum
If the 49ers are confident in Brock Purdy’s return early in the year, Keenum would fit the bill of the type of third QB they’re looking for. He’s a capable backup whose market won’t be large enough that he will automatically turn down a QB3 job with a 49ers club that needed to reach deep into its QB depth chart last season.
Carolina Panthers: DL Matt Ioannidis
With former Panthers interim head coach now manning the 49ers’ defensive coordinator job, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see multiple former Panthers land in San Francisco. Ioannidis is a versatile veteran DT who won’t cost much and can step in as a rotational piece of the 49ers’ defensive line right away.
Chicago Bears: WR N'Keal Harry
The Bears don’t have a ton of high-quality free agents available, but Harry sticks out as a low-risk, high-reward option for San Francisco. He’s been unproductive since the Patriots drafted him at the end of the first round in 2019, with just 64 catches for 714 yards and five touchdowns in 40 games. Perhaps landing in Kyle Shanahan’s offense would help him rediscover some of what made him a first-round selection.
Cincinnati Bengals: TE Hayden Hurst
The 49ers need a secondary pass-catching option at tight end. Hurst hasn’t produced consistently at a high level, but his 56 catches, 571 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns in 2020 indicate his athleticism can translate to production in the NFL. Sliding him in as a TE2 in an offense full of weapons would allow him to be the mismatch problem he’s never had a chance to be.
Cleveland Browns: DE Stephen Weatherly
Weatherly is the kind of pass rusher the 49ers could find a rotational spot for either at defensive end or on the interior. He has only 8.5 sacks in his career with 6.0 of them coming in 2018 and 2019, but he’s been durable for most of his career and wouldn’t be very expensive. It’s easy to see him fitting nicely on a versatile San Francisco defensive line.
Dallas Cowboys: DL Johnathan Hankins
Hankins was once an elite run defender for the Giants in the middle-to-late 2010s, but he’s struggled in that area the last couple seasons with the Raiders and Cowboys. Plugging him into the middle of a defensive line alongside Nick Bosa, Arik Armstead and others may help him get closer to the player he was even as recently as 2020.
Denver Broncos: LB Alex Singleton
The Montana State product was relatively unimpressive for his first couple of seasons with the Eagles. He changed that script last year though with a tremendous year for the Broncos where he played in all 17 games with 12 starts and racked up 163 tackles, six tackles for loss, three pass breakups and a forced fumble. He’d immediately step in as the third LB on base downs alongside Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw.
Detroit Lions: QB Nate Sudfeld
Get the band back together! Sudfeld was released by the 49ers last offseason when they opted to hold onto Brock Purdy instead. The QB wound up signing with the Lions as their backup QB. Heading back to San Francisco would give him a good opportunity to battle for a QB2 job where he might wind up starting depending on the team’s health under center.
Green Bay Packers: K Mason Crosby
Crosby hasn’t known a team other than the Packers since they selected him in the 2007 draft. Chances are he winds up going back there, but the 49ers had a ton of success with Robbie Gould after he spent most of his career with the Bears. If they’re willing to pay a little extra for a reliable veteran kicker, there aren’t many better than Crosby.
Houston Texans: DE Ogbonnia Okoronkwo
Okoronkwo might’ve started to figure it out. His career-high 5.0 sacks last season all came in the final six games. In that same stretch he posted 24 of his 36 pressures on the season per Pro Football Focus. It might cost a little extra to get a 27-year-old edge rusher in the building, but the 49ers would be wise to give him a chance to pick up where he left off.
Indianapolis Colts: WR Parris Campbell
Campbell has big-time speed and he finally started producing some last year with 63 catches for 623 yards and three touchdowns – all career highs. His presence might eliminate any real chance for Danny Gray to make an impact in 2023, but Campbell has 4.31 speed and that’s worth betting on on a short-term deal.
Jacksonville Jaguars: DE Dawuane Smoot
Old friend Arden Key could also fit here, but we picked Smoot for the sake of talking about a more unfamiliar player. He has the size to move inside if the 49ers want to utilize him in that role, and he’s come on strong the last four years from a production standpoint. In that stretch he has 22.5 sacks and 136 pressures per PFF.
Kansas City Chiefs: DE Carlos Dunlap
Dunlap isn’t the player he once was, but even at 34-years old he can rush the heck out of the quarterback. He’d be a really nice veteran pass rushing specialist in San Francisco just like he was for Kansas City last season and the Seahawks the year before that. Over those two years he had 12.5 sacks, 26 QB hits and 15 pass breakups.
Las Vegas Raiders: TE Foster Moreau
If the 49ers are serious about adding a real threat to backup George Kittle, Moreau should be on their radar. It’s important to note he may fetch a sizable free agent contract. That shouldn’t stop San Francisco from getting in on the bidding though. In 61 games with the Raiders the last four years he put up 91 catches for 1,107 yards and 12 touchdowns while working as Darren Waller’s backup. He’d immediately be the 49ers’ second-best pass-catching TE by a wide margin.
Los Angeles Chargers: WR DeAndre Carter
Sac State legend. The real answer here is probably safety Nasir Adderley, but shoutout to the Hornets. Stingers up.
Los Angeles Rams: K Matt Gay
Gay is the best free agent kicker on the market and it doesn’t sound like the Rams are interested in bringing him back. The soon-to-be 29-year-old has drilled 93.8 percent of his kicks the last two years, including 11-of-14 from beyond 50 yards. Along with that, he handled kickoffs for the Rams and launched 79.2 percent of them out of the end zone for touchbacks. If the 49ers are going to overspend on a player this offseason, overspending on the most reliable kicker on the market would be wise.
Miami Dolphins: QB Teddy Bridgewater
The market may push Bridgewater’s number beyond what the 49ers can afford, but Shanahan said the team wants the best possible quarterback who fits their roster. Bridgewater checks a lot of those boxes. He may be willing to land in a spot where he’s battling for the QB2 job alongside an unproven Lance, and the team wouldn’t be in dire straits if he had to start a couple games for them. Bridgewater is right at the top end of the QBs who could realistically sign on to be part of the 49ers’ wacky QB room.
Minnesota Vikings: LB Eric Kendricks
Kendricks isn’t the player he once was, but he can absolutely still play. He put up 137 tackles and six pass breakups last year. Adding him to an already stellar LB room would give him a chance to thrive while also competing for a championship. It might be an overpay for an aging veteran, but the team won’t find many better replacements if Azeez Al-Shaair leaves in free agency.
New England Patriots: OL Isaiah Wynn
There aren’t many positions on the offensive line Wynn can’t play. He could slot in at right tackle though and make the 49ers better along the offensive front. If they’re paying big money for an offensive lineman though, they might just bring Mike McGlinchey back. However, Wynn’s versatility could make him worth more to the 49ers than their own former first-round pick.
New Orleans Saints: DE Marcus Davenport
Davenport would be a fun fit if the 49ers are going to take a big swing on the defensive line. At 6-6, 265 pounds he has the size and athleticism to rush from the edge or from the interior. Since joining the Saints as a first-round pick in 2018, Davenport has posted 189 pressures and 23 sacks. The sack totals have never been eye-popping, but lining him up on the 49ers’ defensive line would put him in a spot to produce at a level he’s not yet reached in the NFL.
New York Giants: DB Julian Love
Love had perhaps his best year as a pro last season for the Giants and wouldn’t cost a ton for the 49ers to bring in as competition for Tashaun Gipson at free safety. At worst he’s quality depth. At best he’s a versatile stating-caliber safety who didn’t allow a completion beyond 30 yards last season per PFF.
New York Jets: LB Kwon Alexander
This just kind of seems fun more than it does great football team building. Putting Alexander back in as the Sam LB with Greenlaw and Warner may not be something the 49ers are interested in doing given his shoddiness in coverage and penchant for missing tackles, but Alexander has great vibes (that is not a PFF stat) and a team coming off consecutive NFC championship game defeats could use that.
Philadelphia Eagles: DT Javon Hargrave
Hargrave will probably cost way more than the 49ers are willing to pay, but he’d immediately be their best option next to Arik Armstead and it wouldn’t be particularly close. The 30-year-old posted a career-high 11.0 sacks last year as an interior lineman. Adding an interior pass rushing presence like that would make San Francisco’s defensive line nigh impossible to block (a lot like Philadelphia’s was last year).
Pittsburgh Steelers: QB Mason Rudolph
Honestly we’re just getting you ready for the type of QB the 49ers are probably going to bring in.
San Francisco 49ers: FS Jimmie Ward
Ward is too good at safety and too versatile to let go. Even with Gipson coming back, the 49ers might regret letting one of their best defensive players walk away in free agency.
Seattle Seahawks: DL Poona Ford
Poona Ford rules. The 5-11, 310-pound Texas product has only missed one game the last four years, and he’s capable of playing multiple spots along the defensive interior. He has 7.5 sacks, 181 tackles and 28 tackles for loss in 76 games as a pro.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: QB Tom Brady
KIDDING! It’s DL Akiem Hicks. He’s just a really solid interior lineman who can play the run and is good for a few sacks per year. The Elk Grove, Calif. native has had some trouble staying healthy the last four years and missed 26 games in that stretch. Still, he’d very easily be one of the key members of their DL rotation right away.
Tennessee Titans: TE Austin Hooper
Hooper is bound to be a 49er at some point. His productivity isn’t what it was in 2018 and 2019 when he was a Pro Bowler, but he’s still a consistently good receiving threat who’d give the 49ers a boost in an area where their TE room really struggles. Even with a dip in production the last three years he has 125 catches for 1,224 yards and nine touchdowns while playing with the best version of Baker Mayfield, the worst version of Baker Mayfield, and the mediocrest version of Ryan Tannehill.
Washington Commanders: DE Efe Obada
Obada fits the DE theme in this list. He’s big enough to kick inside, and he’s never had a monster season of statistical production. In five seasons he’s played in 69 games and posted 15.0 sacks. His career high was 5.5 in the 2020 campaign. Obada would be a relatively cheap rotational option for the 49ers.
