49ers Unlikely To Make More Major FA Signings

The 49ers still have about $33MM in spending money, per GM John Lynch, but as Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle writes, the team is unlikely to use that cash to make any major free agent signings.

Lynch said, “We’re not all the way done yet, perhaps. We’ll use that wisely. We got the guys that we targeted that would help us best become a better football team.”

Branch has taken that statement to mean that San Francisco is going to stand pat with respect to notable free agents that are still available. As Lynch said at the scouting combine, the team is not one player away from being a true title contender, so while the addition of Richard Sherman may have suggested to some that the 49ers had hopes of a deep playoff run in 2018, San Francisco is still apparently committed to its youth movement (as Branch observes, the 49ers have just five offensive or defensive players who are 30 or older).

Lynch indicated that the 49ers will spend their available cash, but will use it to lock up young players who are already on the roster. As Branch writes, right tackle Trent Brown, 24, and safeties Jaquiski Tartt, 26, and Jimmie Ward, 26, are all recent draft picks in the final year of their contracts, and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, 24, will be eligible to receive what figures to be a hefty contract extension after the 2018 season. The team might also use some of its money to give a pay raise to LT Joe Staley.

So, outside of the potential reward for the 33-year-old Staley, the 49ers are using their money to continue building a youthful core that can form the foundation of a competitive team for the foreseeable future. The additions of Sherman, Weston Richburg, and Jerick McKinnon, then, appear to be the only major outside additions for Lynch & Co. this offseason.

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