49ers Rumors: Jimmy G, Ward, Reid
Recently, Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan said that he does not expect an extension for the quarterback to be completed before the end of the year. Garoppolo is technically eligible for free agency this offseason, but the Niners are expected to use the franchise tag on him if they cannot hammer out a long-term deal.
- An extension for safety Jaquiski Tartt appears to be high on the 49ers‘ list of priorities this offseason, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area writes. Tartt’s season ended in early November with a broken forearm, but was among the team’s leaders in tackles. This will be the first offseason in which the Niners are able to negotiate a multi-year extension with the 2015 second-round pick.
- 49ers like safety Eric Reid, but it’s hard to imagine them getting into a bidding war for him in free agency with Tartt, Ward, and Adrian Colbert under contract, according to Maiocco. But, at the right price, the Niners would probably welcome him back.
49ers GM John Lynch is in constant contact with Jimmy Garoppolo‘s agent Don Yee, but their conversations have not included contract negotiations.
“It’s kind of refreshing to talk to him because of the way he’s dealt with Tom [Brady], a lot of people have learned: He really wants these guys just to go focus on their business,” Lynch told KNBR (transcription via Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle). “We’ve agreed that ‘Hey, there’s going to be a time for that, let’s keep in regular contact.’ But, no, we haven’t started discussions. I’m sure that will come in due time. And we’re looking forward to that time.”
- An extension for safety Jaquiski Tartt appears to be high on the 49ers‘ list of priorities this offseason, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area writes. Tartt’s season ended in early November with a broken forearm, but was among the team’s leaders in tackles. This will be the first offseason in which the Niners are able to negotiate a multi-year extension with the 2015 second-round pick.
- Meanwhile, the 49ers have defensive back Jimmie Ward under contract for next year thanks to his fifth-year option, but they’ll have to think long and hard about retaining him, Maiocco writes. Ward’s inability to stay on the field (he’s missed 14 games over the last two seasons) could deter the team from bringing him back at that rate. His ability to play either cornerback or free safety is a plus, but it’s also something of a double-edged sword in this case. Because he played cornerback last year, his option price for 2018 jumped from $5.597MM to $8.526MM.
- 49ers like safety Eric Reid, but it’s hard to imagine them getting into a bidding war for him in free agency with Tartt, Ward, and Adrian Colbert under contract, according to Maiocco. But, at the right price, the Niners would probably welcome him back.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/13/17
Today’s minor moves:
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: DE Lavar Edwards
- Signed off Colts‘ practice squad: WR Matt Hazel
- Waived: DL T.Y. McGill
Detroit Lions
- Claimed off waivers: DT Rodney Coe
- Waived: DE Kasim Edebali
Los Angeles Rams
- Promoted to active roster: DB Isaiah Johnson
Oakland Raiders
- Promoted to active roster: DL Darius Latham
- Placed on injured reserve: LB Cory James
San Francisco 49ers
- Placed on injured reserve: WR Victor Bolden
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted to active roster: LB Paul Dawson
NFL Workout Updates: 12/12/17
Today’s workout updates, with all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter account unless otherwise noted:
Carolina Panthers
- WRs Jordan Leslie; T Josh James; G Kaleb Johnson; DE Joby Saint Fleur; S Shamiel Gary (link)
Chicago Bears
- DE Tavaris Barnes; P Alex Knight (Twitter links)
Cincinnati Bengals
- WR Diontae Spencer; TE A.C. Leonard; CBs Jonathon Mincy, Loucheiz Purifoy; S Kenny Ladler (link)
Cleveland Browns
- WRs Kolby Listenbee, Paul Turner; G Ian Silberman (link)
Green Bay Packers
- LB Nigel Harris; DBs Donte Carey, Malik Golden, Stefan McClure, Zack Richardson (link via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com)
Houston Texans
- T Taylor Hart; CB Dexter McDougle; Ss Trey Caldwell, Ibraheim Campbell (link)
Indianapolis Colts
- QBs Tyler Ferguson, Joel Stave; WRs Corey Brown, Seantavius Jones, Justice Liggins, Kolby Listenbee, Daniel Williams; TE Joe Sommers (Twitter links)
Kansas City Chiefs
- T Storm Norton; G Blake Muir; LB Jayrone Elliott; S Kelcie McCray (Twitter links)
New York Jets
- QBs Mike Bercovici, Connor Shaw; WR DaVaris Daniels, Kolby Listenbee, Tevaun Smith; LBs Jeff Knox, Kacy Rodgers; CBs Jonathon Mincy, Garry Peters, Shaq Richardson; DBs Chris Ackie, Kenny Ladler, Jonathan Rose (all Twitter links)
San Francisco 49ers
- T Khalif Barnes (link)
49ers Sign WR Max McCaffrey
The 49ers are signing wide receiver Max McCaffrey off of the Packers’ practice squad, a source tells Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). The move allows Max to join one of his father’s former teams and, more importantly, give him a chance to see live NFL action once again. 
[RELATED: Jimmy Garropolo Extension Not Expected Until Offseason]
McCaffrey has bounced around a bit in his young NFL career. He has dressed for only five contests so far, all of which came with the Jaguars earlier this year.
The 23-year-old is no longer waiting in the wings for a potential playoff team, but he’ll have an opportunity to show the 49ers and the rest of the league that he is worthy of a 53-man roster spot next fall.
In his final year at Duke, McCaffrey caught 52 passes for 643 yards and five touchdowns, all collegiate career highs.
Garropolo Extension Not Expected Until Offseason
- 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan does not expect a new contract with Jimmy Garoppolo to be hammered out before the end of the season, Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle reports (Twitter link). After amassing 627 passing yards in his first two starts, Garoppolo is almost assuredly the team’s answer under center for the foreseeable future. He is sure to cash in this offseason.
Jimmy Garoppolo To Remain 49ers Starter
In his first start for his new team, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo led San Francisco to their second win of the season when he orchestrated a late game-winning drive to beat the Bears.
Garoppolo got the start partly because rookie third round pick C.J. Beathard had suffered an injury in the team’s loss to the Seahawks two weeks ago. However, unsurprisingly head coach Kyle Shanahan announced today that Garoppolo would be his starting QB once again for the team’s Week 14 matchup vs. the Texans, reports Ron Kroichick of the San Francisco Chronicle. The first-year coach seemed to be impressed with the types of plays Garoppolo made with only limited practice time.
“You could see he made some impressive throws,” said Shanahan. “There were definitely situations where he got a little confused and still was able to make plays — the more he plays and the more he’s around us, knowing the scheme, he’ll have less of those. It was still very impressive, with the situation he was in, to keep his poise. He was able to make some plays when things weren’t perfect.”
Garoppolo’s overall numbers from this past Sunday weren’t all too impressive. The 26-year-old did complete 26 of his 37 pass attempts, but couldn’t find his way into the end zone. He also threw a pick in the contest. Nevertheless, it was still impressive to see Garoppolo lead the struggling 49ers to a late game victory, and he should only get more comfortable with the offense as he continues to get playing time.
San Francisco will likely still have a top five pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, but with Garoppolo a strong candidate for the franchise tag in the offseason, he’ll definitely get his chances to impress the 49ers brass.
Trade Market Forming For Garoppolo?
There is a “strong expectation” the Chiefs will trade Alex Smith this offseason, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports. There could be a “historic” quarterback market in 2018, a league source told La Canfora, and Smith’s name may be a key part of it. The fifth-year Kansas City starter has just one more season left on his contract, and the Chiefs have Patrick Mahomes waiting in the wings. While Mahomes is viewed as a project, and one that might not necessarily mesh with the Chiefs’ veteran core right away, Smith has struggled after a hot start — although, he has four touchdown passes today — and has the Chiefs teetering on the fringe of the AFC race despite a 5-0 run to open the season. The Chiefs sent two second-round picks to the 49ers for a then-28-year-old Smith in 2013, and while their return might not be quite on that level given Smith’s age (34 in May) and contract status, the supply-and-demand issues at this position figure to make Smith a valuable trade chip. Smith is due to comprise $20.6MM of K.C.’s 2018 cap.
- The 49ers do not sound especially eager to dangle Jimmy Garoppolo as a trade piece upon franchising him as they’re expected to, but La Canfora reports there could be a market for such a move. Multiple execs would be interested in exploring Garoppolo trade talks, per JLC, should the 49ers go after ex-Kyle Shanahan protege Kirk Cousins. While the Cousins-to-San Francisco talk has died down since the Garoppolo trade, the Redskins passer could be a tag-and-trade candidate as well. Garoppolo made his first start for the 49ers today, and it may take a rough December from the quarterback to convince the 49ers to abandon this project so soon.
49ers Considered Trubisky Before Trading
Shanahan will get to see Trubisky up close on Sunday when the Niners travel to take on the Bears.
The 49ers considered Mitch Trubisky with the No. 2 pick in the 2017 NFL Draft before deciding to trade the pick to the Bears, who ended up selecting the North Carolina product, coach Kyle Shanahan told NBC Sports’ Matt Maiocco.
- Sticking with the Bears and 49ers theme; Shanahan also said he was interested in hiring Chicago defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. A well-respected and longtime NFL coach, Fangio could be a candidate to replace John Fox in Chicago, should the coach be let go in the coming weeks. “I think Vic definitely deserves to be [a head coach]. He’s one of the coaches I’ve respected the most, just from going against him,” Shanahan said.
Chip Kelly UCLA Deal Saves 49ers Money
- Chip Kelly agreeing to become UCLA’s head coach helped save the 49ers money. The five-year, $23.3MM contract Kelly signed with UCLA will help offset what the 49ers owe him, Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com reports. The 49ers will save $7.5MM because of Kelly’s Bruins agreement, per Maiocco, adding the team would have owed its one-season coach approximately $14MM between 2018 and ’19. Now, UCLA will pay $7.5MM of that amount. “Chip did us a solid,” a 49ers source said, via Maiocco. Kelly signed a four-year, $24MM contract to become San Francisco’s head coach last year but was fired after a 2-14 campaign.
NFL Workout Updates: 11/30/17
Here are the latest workout and visit updates, courtesy of veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer unless otherwise noted.
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Ravens
Green Bay Packers
- TE Devon Cajuste (visit), LB Ahmad Thomas (visit)
Kansas City Chiefs
- TE Anthony Firkser, Henry Krieger-Coble (link)
Miami Dolphins
- RB Russell Hansbrough, RB Kalif Phillips, RB Brandon Radcliff (link)
New Orleans Saints
- TE Alex Ellis, TE Darion Griswold, TE Henry Krieger-Coble, TE Robert Tonyan (link)
Oakland Raiders
- WR Seantavius Jones, WR Francis Owusu, WR Tevaun Smith (link)
San Francisco 49ers
- T Reid Fragel, CB Senquez Golson, K Garrett Hartley, CB Michael Hunter (visit), CB Keith Lewis, LB Boseko Lokombo, LB John Lotulelei, CB J.R. Nelson, TE Luke Papilion, RB Jhurell Pressley, RB Khiry Robinson, CB Channing Stribling RB Jahad Thomas, WR Javon Williams, TE Travis Wilson, CB Lou Young (Twitter links via Balzer)