The San Francisco 49ers will have a decision to make this offseason when it comes to Arik Armstead. The defensive end, playing on the fifth-year option from his rookie deal, is scheduled to become a free agent at the start of the new league year.
Armstead had a lot to prove heading into the 2019 season. He needed to show that he could live up to being the No. 17 overall draft pick in 2015. Armstead has done that and more. He led the 49ers in sacks during the regular season with 10, and he got to both Kick Cousins of the Minnesota Vikings and Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers in the team's two playoff games.
With his contract status up in the air and his future unknown, Armstead is focused on what he can control — the 49ers' upcoming matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV.
"We have a great team. I love being a part of this team," Armstead told Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area during the latest 49ers Insider Podcast. "I love playing and being a Forty-Niner. Like we talked about earlier, I'm from Sacramento, so I love it here. But right now, I'm just focused on trying to help this team win games, like I have been all year, and trying to get to the Super Bowl.
"That's the only thing I really can control is how I play, how I practice, how I prepare, and how I play in that game. Hopefully, we can get a championship, and then I'll let all the other things take care of itself."
As for the Super Bowl itself, Armstead knows the defense has a tough task ahead of it. All of the pre-Super-Bowl chatter has surrounded the big playmaking ability of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Can the NFL's No. 2 ranked pass rush (DVOA), which racked up 48 sacks during the regular season, do enough to slow down Kansas City's young and exciting quarterback?
"The focus is ... getting to him, trying to rattle him, put pressure on him, and keep him from just sitting back there and making him uncomfortable," Armstead explained. "I think that's going to be a key to the game, is us getting to him, but I think we're going to come up with a good plan to do it, and we're going to be up for the challenge."
You can listen to the entire conversation with Armstead, along with linebacker Kwon Alexander, below.
