9:52am: Joel Corry of CBSSports.com (Twitter link) has a total of $5.4MM for Kilgore’s extension, including $2.595MM in guaranteed money and $1.8MM in escalators.
FRIDAY, 9:25am: Kilgore’s four-year deal is worth a total of $4.845MM, including a $1.35MM signing bonus, tweets Tom Pelissero of USA Today. If Kilgore does indeed become the 49ers’ starting center and holds that position, he could be a very nice bargain for the team.
THURSDAY, 2:26pm: The 49ers have reached an agreement on a contract extension with offensive lineman Daniel Kilgore, reports Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com. The 49ers confirmed the extension in a press release, indicating that the new deal will keep Kilgore under contract through 2017. That means the team added three new years to the 26-year-old’s rookie contract, which had been set to expire after the 2014 season.
“We are pleased to extend the contract of a talented, young player like Dan,” said GM Trent Baalke in a statement. “This move is another example of our philosophy to extend the contracts of our own young players.”
While he has served as a backup and part-time player during his first three NFL seasons since being selected by the Niners in the fifth round of the 2011 draft, Kilgore looks poised to assume a larger role going forward. The team’s 2013 starting center, Jonathan Goodwin, is eligible for unrestricted free agency and has yet to hear from the 49ers about a new contract, as Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle tweeted earlier today. As such, it looks like San Francisco may let the 35-year-old walk, handing the reins at center to Kilgore.
Kilgore, who has experience at both center and guard, played just 86 regular-season snaps for the Niners, mostly functioning as an extra blocker in run-heavy packages. He becomes the third member of the 2011 draft class to sign a contract extension this offseason, following Taiwan Jones of the Raiders and Jason Kelce of the Eagles.