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San Francisco 49ers News & Rumors

49ers To Sign QB Joshua Dobbs

March 18th, 2024 at 5:56pm CST by Ben Levine

Joshua Dobbs has found a new home. The free agent quarterback is signing with the 49ers, agent Mike McCartney announced.

According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, Dobbs will be signing a one-year deal that includes $2.25MM in guaranteed money. The quarterback can also earn $750K via per-game roster bonuses.

It’s been a busy 12 months for the seven-year veteran. After re-joining the Browns last offseason, he was traded to the Cardinals during the preseason to serve as a fill-in for Kyler Murray. After going 1-7 in his eight starts, Dobbs was dealt to the Vikings to replace the injured Kirk Cousins.

The 29-year-old had some ups and downs during his brief stint in Minnesota. He started his stint with two-straight wins, including a debut where he tossed two touchdowns and scored another on the ground. The Vikings lost his next two starts, including a Week 12 loss to the Bears where Dobbs tossed four interceptions. He was benched for Nick Mullens during the team’s Week 13 win over the Raiders and didn’t see the field again in 2023.

Dobbs ultimately finished the campaign having completed 62.8 percent of his passes for 2,464 yards, 13 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. He added another 421 yards and six touchdowns on the ground. The former fourth-round pick only had two career starts heading into the 2023 season.

With Sam Darnold now in Minnesota, the 49ers have been in the market for some QB depth behind Brock Purdy. Dobbs will likely compete with Brandon Allen to be San Francisco’s QB2 to begin the 2024 campaign.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/17/24

March 17th, 2024 at 12:24pm CST by Rory Parks

We will keep track of today’s minor moves here:

San Francisco 49ers

Turner signed with the Cardinals as a UDFA in 2018 and has been with the club ever since. He has primarily operated as a special teamer during his time in the desert, racking up 1,756 third phase snaps during his six-year career against just 190 defensive snaps. However, as Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 writes, Turner will have a chance to “showcase [his] skill at linebacker,” and he could assume some of the snaps that recently-departed LB Oren Burks played.

49ers Re-Sign WR Chris Conley, Add CB Chase Lucas

March 16th, 2024 at 9:03pm CST by Adam La Rose

The 49ers have made a pair of moves which will primarily affect their special teams. Wide receiver Chris Conley has been re-signed on a one-year deal, per a team announcement. In addition, Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle notes cornerback Chase Lucas has been signed, also on a one-year accord.

Conley joined San Francisco last offseason to offer the team a complementary option in the passing game along with the potential for special teams contributions. The 31-year-old had not been a mainstay with respect to third phase duties in many of his previous stops. Drawing only eight combined targets between regular and postseason play in 2023, however, that was the bulk of Conley’s workload during the year.

The former third-rounder saw a 36% snap share on special teams with the 49ers, the highest mark of his career. His contributions in that regard included a pair tackles as a gunner during the Super Bowl, and Conley can be expected to reprise that role in 2024. He could also provide a vertical threat in the passing game behind the established starting WR trio of Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel and Jauan Jennings.

Lucas entered the league as a Lions draftee in 2022. He did not log a snap on defense in any of his 18 games with Detroit, but last season in particular he became a key special teamer. The 27-year-old saw a 72% snap share with respect to third phase playing time, but that was not sufficient to receive an ERFA tender. Free to sign with a new team, Lucas has elected to head to the Bay Area for 2024.

The Lions handed linebacker (and new NFLPA president) Jalen Reeves-Maybin a two-year extension which includes record-breaking compensation for a special teams player. With considerable resources used on retaining him, it comes as little surprise Detroit was willing to let Lucas depart. The latter could provide depth in the 49ers’ secondary, but failing that he will be in line to continue as a core contributor on special teams in San Francisco.

49ers To Re-Sign G Jon Feliciano

March 16th, 2024 at 11:50am CST by Sam Robinson

TODAY, 11:50am: After agreeing to a new contract with the 49ers, Feliciano hinted that the 2024 campaign could be his last. “Last ride,” he wrote on social media (via Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle), “#Year 10.”

MARCH 15, 9:20am: The 49ers had expressed interest in keeping Jon Feliciano for a second season. Despite having Spencer Burford on a rookie contract for two more years, San Francisco will follow through with its plan of retaining the veteran.

Feliciano will indeed stay in the Bay Area, according to Fox Sports’ Peter Schrager, who indicates the veteran interior O-lineman agreed to a one-year deal Friday. This will be Feliciano’s second one-year 49ers agreement.

Burford remained the 49ers’ right guard starter coming into the season, with Feliciano in the Daniel Brunskill swing role during the campaign’s first half. But the 49ers benched the second-year blocker, turning to Feliciano, who started seven regular-season games and all three San Francisco playoff contests. The 49ers needing to turn back to Burford in Super Bowl LVIII (due to a Feliciano injury) produced a notable miscommunication, as a Chris Jones pressure led to an overtime field goal — which preceded a Chiefs touchdown and a Twitter-driven storyline.

Feliciano defended 49ers right tackle Colton McKivitz by suggesting Burford was at fault on the pivotal play. The veteran blocker later apologized and re-emerged on the 49ers’ radar. GM John Lynch also said he would speak with Laken Tomlinson about a potential reunion. After two Jets seasons, the longtime 49ers left guard remains a free agent. The 49ers extended McKivitz recently, and Feliciano’s return means the team’s five first-string O-linemen are under contract for 2024.

Among guard regulars, Pro Football Focus rated Burford as the second-worst pass blocker last season. Burford had split time with Brunskill as a rookie, but the fourth-rounder sat behind Feliciano during last season’s second half. Feliciano, 32, suffered a pectoral injury during Super Bowl LVIII. PFF rated the former Bills and Giants starter as one of the NFL’s top guards, slotting him fifth overall on the strength of a high-level run-blocking grade.

The Giants had used Feliciano as a one-year center stopgap, letting him walk before drafting John Michael Schmitz in last year’s second round. In a nine-year career that has included 61 starts, the former Raiders fourth-rounder made 31 starts as a Bills guard from 2019-21.

49ers Sign CB Isaac Yiadom, Re-Sign LB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles

March 15th, 2024 at 10:55pm CST by Ely Allen

The 49ers continue to secure depth on defense. After losing cornerback Isaiah Oliver to the Jets and potentially watching linebacker Oren Burks depart via free agency, San Francisco has added former Saints cornerback Isaac Yiadom and re-signed reserve linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler brings us the news of Yiadom. Yiadom played a similar role in the Saints’ defense as Oliver did in the 49ers’ last year but to different results. Both graded out extremely well in coverage, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), but Yiadom graded out much better in run defense. Yiadom was also tested more in coverage and delivered by tallying up an impressive 14 passes defensed.

After a season that saw Yiadom grade out as the 10th best cornerback in the league, according to PFF, the 49ers replace one talented corner with another. Fowler tells us that Yiadom explored other options, visiting the Commanders yesterday, but ultimately, the 27-year-old chose to join one of last year’s best defenses instead of helping to rebuild one of last year’s worst.

According to Josh Alper of NBC Sports, Flannigan-Fowles is set to return on a new one-year deal. Flannigan-Fowles has played much the same role in the last four years with the 49ers. Flannigan-Fowles plays mostly on special teams but tends to find his way onto the field around 13 percent of the time. With another season in San Francisco, though, the 27-year-old may be able to carve out a bit more playing time. As of right now, Burks is a free agent, not signed to return for 2024. If that holds true and the 49ers fail to make any other additions, Flannigan-Fowles could find his way into Burks’ role next season.

49ers To Sign LB De’Vondre Campbell

March 15th, 2024 at 11:13am CST by Sam Robinson

11:13am: The 49ers will bring in Campbell, with NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport noting a deal is in place. The sides agreed on a one-year contract. This will be a fourth team for Campbell, who will join Warner as a presumptive starter while Greenlaw recovers.

9:12am: Having an agreement to add a veteran starter as Dre Greenlaw insurance, the 49ers saw their plan come apart when the Cowboys instead lured Eric Kendricks. The defending NFC champions are now looking at another recent cap casualty.

De’Vondre Campbell is on the team’s radar. San Francisco is showing “strong interest” in the recently released Green Bay linebacker, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco tweets. The Packers cut Campbell two seasons into his five-year, $50MM deal this week.

Kendricks had been tentatively in place to work as insurance while Greenlaw rehabs the Achilles tear he suffered while trotting onto the field early in Super Bowl LVIII. The Cowboys featured a bigger need at the position compared to the 49ers, who should be expected to have Greenlaw back on the field alongside All-Pro Fred Warner at some point next season. Campbell now may be the target for this No. 3 linebacker role.

Oren Burks operated in this capacity last season, playing 433 defensive snaps following Azeez Al-Shaair‘s free agency exit. A former Campbell Packers teammate, Burks is unsigned for the 2024 season. Campbell, 30, played in front of Burks in 2021 — an All-Pro season — en route to signing a new Packers contract. As the Packers transition to a new defensive coordinator, they dropped Campbell’s contract to free up cap space. The former Cardinals and Falcons defender had no guarantees remaining on the deal.

Campbell started 40 games in Green Bay, including 11 last season. After back-to-back years with six tackles for loss and two interceptions apiece, the former Atlanta second-rounder took a step back last year (75 tackles, three for loss) in an injury-shortened season. Campbell, whose Falcons tenure overlapped with Kyle Shanahan‘s in 2016, also played through a shoulder injury in 2022.

Greenlaw underwent surgery shortly after the Super Bowl. While the timeline could allow for the veteran linebacker to be back by Week 1, he will likely begin training camp on the active/PUP list and could be a candidate for a reserve/PUP designation. The latter transaction would sideline Greenlaw for four games to start the season. The 49ers are preparing to take precautions while Greenlaw rehabs; seeing if Campbell would accept the former Al-Shaair part-time role — when Greenlaw is healthy, that is — will be something to monitor.

Bills, Texans Interested In Arik Armstead; Houston Submitted Offer To Sheldon Rankins

March 14th, 2024 at 11:12am CST by Sam Robinson

With the 49ers officially designating Arik Armstead as a post-June 1 release, interest in the nine-year veteran defensive lineman is forming.

The Titans became the first known Armstead suitor, but KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson notes the Texans join them. Like recent Texans pickup Azeez Al-Shaair, Armstead played under DeMeco Ryans in San Francisco. The 30-year-old defender does not have a clear connection to the Bills, but The Athletic’s Matt Barrows mentioned Buffalo as a team to monitor here. Wilson adds the Bills are indeed interested.

Ryans coached Armstead for two seasons as 49ers defensive coordinator but was in San Francisco during six of the D-lineman’s nine years in the Bay Area. The Texans have added Danielle Hunter, Denico Autry and Folorunso Fatukasi up front but have endured multiple subtractions on their defensive interior. Sheldon Rankins signed with the Bengals hours after the Texans traded Maliek Collins to the 49ers.

Houston looks to have driven up Cincinnati’s price on Rankins, with Wilson adding the AFC South club made a $12MM-per-year offer to the former first-round pick. Rankins joined the Bengals on a two-year, $26MM deal; he will be set to team with B.J. Hill up front in Cincinnati. Rankins posted his best pass-rushing season since 2018, totaling six sacks and ranking seventh in ESPN’s pass rush win rate metric.

As for Collins, Wilson indicates the team made the decision to move on from the three-year contributor over the weekend. That still proved to be an interesting trade, seeing as Collins totaled five sacks after signing a through-2025 extension last year. The Texans attempted to trade Collins for Armstead, per Wilson. Considering the 49ers cut Armstead, it is unclear what led to the talks breaking down. The 49ers offered Armstead a pay cut, but he balked with an intent on testing free agency.

The Bills are keeping DaQuan Jones, but the veteran run stuffer and Armstead have differing skillsets. The former first-round pick has worked as a plus interior pass rusher, teaming with Nick Bosa as the 49ers’ D-line pillars under Ryans and Robert Saleh. Ed Oliver signed an extension last year, but the Bills have some work to do on their defensive interior. Jordan Phillips, Tim Settle, Poona Ford and Linval Joseph are free agents.

Armstead is coming off knee surgery, after a season in which knee and foot trouble kept him out of five late-season games. The 6-foot-7 defensive tackle returned in the playoffs at less than 100% and sacked Patrick Mahomes in Super Bowl LVIII. Armstead has eight career postseason sacks, notching at least two during the 2019, 2021 and 2022 playoffs. Despite injuries shortening his 2022 and ’23 seasons, Armstead fared well last year. Pass rush win rate slotted the Oregon alum 10th, while Pro Football Focus ranked him 15th among interior D-linemen while assigning a career-best run-stoppage grade. Armstead totaled five sacks and 13 QB hits in 2023.

Additionally, the Texans are meeting with Settle, according to Wilson. Profiling as a cheaper option compared to Armstead, Settle spent the past two seasons in Buffalo on a two-year, $14MM deal. Once part of the first-rounder-laden Washington D-line, Settle has not disproved his five-sack 2018 season was a fluke. He has never registered more than two in any other slate. The Virginia Tech alum started only four games with the Bills, though he is still just 26.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/13/24

March 13th, 2024 at 9:18pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

49ers Place Second-Round RFA Tender On WR Jauan Jennings

March 13th, 2024 at 7:43pm CST by Ben Levine

Wideout Jauan Jennings is a restricted free agent, and the 49ers are assuring some kind of compensation if he signs elsewhere. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the 49ers have placed a second-round tender on Jennings.

[RELATED: 49ers Eyeing Extension For WR Jauan Jennings]

Jennings will now be tied to a one-year deal worth $4.89MM thanks to the tender. The wideout could still join another team if he signs an unmatched offer sheet, although that’d require a suitor to sacrifice a second-round selection to the 49ers.

The second-round tender always seemed like the likeliest route for the organization. San Francisco could have tendered Jennings at his original-round level ($3.12MM), but an unmatched offer sheet would have only resulted in a seventh-rounder as compensation.

The former seventh-round pick has spent his entire career with the 49ers, appearing in 45 games across three seasons. Jennings has settled into the WR3 role behind Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, although that’s still led to plenty of targets. Jennings had a career year in 2022, finishing with 35 catches for 416 yards and one touchdown. His numbers took a bit of a step back in 2023 (19 catches, 265 yards), but Jennings turned it on in the playoffs. In three games, the receiver hauled in 10 catches for 111 yards and a score.

John Lynch previously implied that the 49ers could explore an extension with Jennings, and today’s move doesn’t do anything to reduce those chances. Still, the receiver will have to juggle a long-term commitment vs. a near-$5MM salary for 2024.

Eric Kendricks Will Join Cowboys, Not 49ers

March 13th, 2024 at 6:52pm CST by Ely Allen

After reportedly agreeing to a one-year contract with the 49ers earlier today, veteran linebacker Eric Kendricks will instead sign with the Cowboys. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Kendricks had a change of heart, preferring to play in Dallas.

Kendricks was a cap casualty a week ago, getting released from his two-year contract with the Chargers after finishing second on the team in tackles. The nine-year veteran had secured $6.63MM per year after leaving Minnesota for the first time and rewarded Los Angeles with 117 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, a forced fumble, and six passes defensed. Pro Football Focus graded Kendricks as the 25th best linebacker in the NFL.

A key presence at middle linebacker during the Vikings’ Mike Zimmer era, Kendricks was tied to an eight-figure-per-year Minnesota deal two seasons ago. Kendricks, 32, has put together eight straight seasons with 100-plus tackles, mixing in 18.5 career sacks. He earned first-team All-Pro acclaim in 2019, helping the Vikings to the divisional round, while starting for four playoff teams from 2015-22.

Kendricks was set to add some depth at linebacker in San Francisco. The 49ers fielded one of the NFL’s better defenses last year but were thrown for a loop when Dre Greenlaw tore his Achilles tendon in the Super Bowl last year. San Francisco will now be forced to look elsewhere for that depth.

Instead, Kendricks is set to reunite with Zimmer, who takes over as defensive coordinator in Dallas this offseason. Zimmer sought an upgrade at middle linebacker on a defense that was stout against the pass but middling against the run. Kendricks should slot in as a starter between Micah Parsons and Leighton Vander Esch, ceding time here and there to Damone Clark. Due to his experience with Zimmer, though, expect Kendricks to play a larger role in Dallas.

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