The San Francisco 49ers are signing veteran offensive lineman Tim Barnes, per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He was a participant during the 49ers' minicamp practices last week.
Former Mizzou and Rams center Tim Barnes will sign with 49ers today.
— Jim Thomas (@jthom1) May 1, 2017
Barnes has five seasons of NFL experience and started his pro career by signing with the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent out of Missouri in 2011. He was released prior to the start of the season and then signed with the St. Louis Rams, with whom he remained for the rest of his career until he was released on March 9th.
Barnes has spent the majority of his career at center and his departure from the Rams came after the signing of Minnesota Vikings center John Sullivan.
Barnes played 12 games during his first season with the Rams and made his first career start in December of 2013 during a 30-10 win over the Arizona Cardinals. He went on to start the team's remaining games that season. Barnes appeared in 14 games as a backup in 2014. He entered the 2015 offseason competing for the starting job, won, and went on to start all 32 games over the next two seasons.
On March 15th, the 49ers traded for Baltimore Ravens center Jeremy Zuttah. The 49ers also have center Daniel Kilgore on the roster, who started the 2016 season as the team's starting center. He suffered a hamstring injury during a loss to the New York Jets and finished the season on the injured reserve list.
The 49ers failed to address the offensive line during the 2017 NFL draft, which concluded on Saturday. The signing of Barnes adds to the unit's depth.
Earlier on Monday, it was reported that veteran guard Brandon Fusco, formerly of the Minnesota Vikings, was expected to sign with 49ers.
