The Niners didn’t make many major moves this offseason outside of the building.
The San Francisco 49ers had a relatively quiet offseason in comparison to previous years. They didn’t make any major free agent signings. They got extensions for stars done early. And they focused on the 2025 NFL Draft, taking advantage of having 11 selections.
As a result, they have a younger team for the upcoming year, placing more emphasis on the coaching staff and the stars of the squad.
Usually, when a team doesn’t make many moves in the offseason, it can be seen as a detriment, as they may not be getting better. But, in the 49ers case, perhaps the minimal moves were the right thing to do after a down year.
What grade should the 49ers receive for their offseason?
ESPN’s Seth Walder graded every NFL team’s offseason, pointing out the biggest move for each squad, as well as their best and worst moves.
The 49ers got an A- in the rankings, with Walder pointing out Brock Purdy’s extension as the team’s biggest move. As for the best move, the analyst noted the return of Robert Saleh as the team’s defensive coordinator, while not having any bad moves to note.
“After a disappointing 6-11 campaign, the 49ers opened their offseason by bringing back Saleh, their defensive coordinator from 2017 to 2020,” Walder wrote. “Though his head coaching tenure with the Jets was shaky, his defenses ranked in the top five in expected points added per play in 2022, 2023 and the first five weeks of 2024, before he was fired. After the firing, the Jets’ defense plummeted to 30th in EPA per play.
“But San Francisco’s biggest move came when Purdy’s long-awaited extension finally happened, as the 49ers gave their quarterback a deal worth $53 million per year, with $100 million fully guaranteed. There are mixed opinions about Purdy’s exact level of responsibility for the 49ers’ passing success, but he’s a perfect fit for what they want to do.
“San Francisco reached elite levels of passing efficiency with Purdy in 2023, performing at a higher level than it managed with Jimmy Garoppolo. The deal was also cheaper than I expected. If it had been $60 million per year, it would have been in line with Trevor Lawrence’s and Jordan Love’s 2024 deals when adjusting for salary cap inflation, and I wouldn’t have blinked.”
The salary cap inflation point is definitely worth noting, as the NFL has seen the cap continue to skyrocket in recent years. So, while $53 million per year is still a substantial sum for the quarterback, it may not be as much as initially expected when compared to his peers.
Saleh’s return should hopefully improve a defense that significantly struggled against the run in 2024. The renowned coordinator has authored strong defenses while with the New York Jets, and has a young crop of players at his disposal in San Francisco.
Other notable moves from the 49ers included the trade of wideout Deebo Samuel for a fifth-round pick, which Walder praised, given the wideout’s recent decline and salary for 2025.
“Before free agency, the 49ers traded Deebo Samuel Sr. to the Commanders for a fifth-round pick. It was a year too late, though that’s easy to say with the benefit of hindsight. Samuel’s production has declined — he recorded only 670 receiving yards and 1.8 yards per route run in 2024. He has always scored poorly in open and catch scores in ESPN’s receiver tracking metrics, which didn’t matter at his peak because he essentially broke the yards-after-catch score scale.
“But his YAC score has steadily declined, and with him 29, I doubt it will ever reach its previous highs. The 49ers did well to get a Day 3 pick to avoid paying Samuel $17.6 million in 2025. They also have options to replace his production.”
The analyst also praised the extensions for star tight end George Kittle and linebacker Fred Warner, paying them at the top of their respective positions. Walder specifically liked the structure of the Warner deal, while understanding the logic of keeping Kittle despite his age.
“San Francisco also doled out big-money extensions to two more core players: linebacker Fred Warner and tight end George Kittle. The Niners paid Warner $21 million per year, but without a ton of risk — the deal features only $21 million fully guaranteed, per OverTheCap.com (there are rolling guarantees, however). Warner is worth it, and the extension comes in much lower in terms of average per year than his 2021 deal if we adjust for cap inflation.
“Kittle also got a raise. He had been scheduled to earn $15 million in the final year of his contract, per OverTheCap.com, but instead the 49ers and Kittle agreed to an extension that averages $19 million per year with $35 million fully guaranteed. It would not have been outlandish to have traded the 31-year-old, but if things break right San Francisco will be back in the title hunt, and keeping Kittle — coming off a great season — would be my choice, too.”
Departures in free agency were the big theme for the 49ers, with starters Aaron Banks, Charvarius Ward, Talanoa Hufanga, and Dre Greenlaw all heading elsewhere on multi-year deals.
However, Walder wasn’t fazed by those losses, actually noting that it was the right move to let most walk.
“The 49ers suffered significant losses in free agency — Aaron Banks, Charvarius Ward, Jaylon Moore, Talanoa Hufanga and Dre Greenlaw — but I thought most of these departures made sense for the team.
“San Francisco also made a win-win trade for Bryce Huff, giving up a Day 3 pick for the former Jets and Eagles pass rusher. The 49ers are paying Huff a little under $8 million to find out whether they can recapture some of his New York magic.”
While there weren’t many major additions outside of Huff, the 49ers were still able to have a strong offseason in Walder’s eyes, going younger and extending multiple stars.