49ers exercise Alex Smith buy-back clause

It's been the better part of a decade since Alex Smith and Colin Kaepernick were part of the same quarterback room with the San Francisco 49ers, but Smith still sounds as impressed as ever with what he experienced on and off the field when the two of them were teammates. Smith spoke for almost an hour this week on Kaepernick and a number of other subjects during a guest spot on the 10 Questions With Kyle Brandt Podcast (click here to listen). Smith, who was the starting quarterback for the 49ers when Kaepernick was selected in Round 2 of the 2011 NFL Draft, told Brandt he remembered Kaepernick as a "great dude" who brought an impressive work ethic to the NFL right out of the gate. "We were doing workouts

The San Francisco 49ers signed speedy former Browns and Chargers wide receiver Travis Benjamin to a one-year, $1.05 million contract last April. He was excited to be reunited with head coach Kyle Shanahan. San Francisco was so confident that Benjamin could contribute that it was willing to trade away its fastest wideout, Marquise Goodwin, during the draft. Just over a month later, tragedy hit Benjamin's family. The COVID-19 pandemic, which has been going strong for nearly a year now, had hit home. The receiver lost his 77-year-old grandmother to complications from the virus. That changed Benjamin's outlook. "I was ready for the season,"

Stephen A. Smith and Max Kellerman of ESPN's First Take have different predictions on who will start at quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers during the upcoming season. Kellerman often defends Jimmy Garoppolo against Smith's criticisms, so you might naturally assume that Kellerman would predict that San Francisco would avoid shaking things up. You might also assume that the critical Smith predicts that the 49ers move on from Garoppolo. The opposite is true. Smith envisions San Francisco sticking with Garoppolo while Kellerman has another quarterback in mind to lead head coach Kyle Shanahan's offense. "Me personally, I think it's going to be Jimmy G (as the 49ers' starter)," Smith declared. "That's what I believe. I believe that everybody's been

San Francisco 49ers VP of player personnel Adam Peters recently spoke with Matt Barrows of The Athletic. He was asked about the team's presence in South Carolina to watch Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence. The Niners own the No. 12 overall pick in the upcoming draft, and Lawrence is expected to be the top selection, going to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Yet, San Francisco was among 17 teams in attendance to watch Lawrence. Peters reminds everyone that there were other players there. For example, one of the receivers that Lawrence was throwing to during the workout was Cornell Powell, who caught 53 passes for 882 yards and seven touchdowns for the Tigers last season. The