Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
49ers, Kyle Juszczyk had ‘pleasant’ talks about a potential return, await salary-cap clarification
Feb 23, 2021 at 10:49 AM
•
Videos are auto-populated by an affiliate. This site has no control over the videos that appear above.
's course remains set for free agency. The San Francisco 49ers hope to retain their highly-valued fullback. That might be difficult given the upcoming salary-cap constraints due to the pandemic's impact on the 2020 season. The 49ers have several impending free agents they would like to bring back. Juszczyk has been such a fixture within head coach Kyle Shanahan's offense over the past four years that it's difficult to imagine it without him.
Juszczyk is already the highest-paid fullback by a significant margin, which isn't likely to change with his next contract. Shanahan may look to rework his offense to be less dependent on a dominant fullback like Juszczyk. However, ideally, Juszczyk would stay put.
Josina Anderson, the host of the
Undefined with Josina Anderson show and podcast, reports that the 49ers and Juszczyk have had "a few preliminary exchanges," discussing a potential return. San Francisco is waiting to see how the fullback might fit into their budget.
The NFL and NFLPA informed teams last week that the
salary cap floor would rise by $5 million to $180 million. It could be higher, though. That's why the 49ers — and several other cap-strapped teams — are in a holding pattern.
Anderson's report matches up with what Matt Barrows of The Athletic reported last week.
"I can tell you that Juszczyk and the 49ers have had some preliminary talks, but we're nowhere near the serious discussion stage,"
wrote Barrows. "Free agency, after all, begins a week or so later (March 17) than it usually does."
Still, Juszczyk remains a priority for the 49ers.
"He's important to us, and we're going to make every effort to try to keep him here,"
general manager John Lynch said in January. "I'm sure there'll be competition, and we understand that, but Kyle's a real important player to this football team, and we'll do everything we can to keep him here."
Anderson describes the preliminary talks between Juszczyk and the 49ers as "pleasant."
Juszczyk would like to return to the 49ers but will consider his family situation in any decision.
"I've been lucky enough to have the career that I've had these past eight years that I'm definitely going to have a lot of options,"
Juszczyk recently said during a podcast interview. "But I also absolutely love San Francisco. I love playing for Kyle. I love playing for Mike McDaniel. Bobby Turner, my running back coach, is an absolute OG. I want to send him out the right way.
"But there's a lot more factors that come into play now. I'm 29 years old. I've been married for a while. We want to start a family soon. It's tough because our whole family is on the East Coast, and being out there on the West Coast, it's tough to really have our first child and basically be alone. That's something I have to think about and weigh in on my decision."
Related News
Facebook Comments
More San Francisco 49ers News
49ers add potential Trent Williams successor in latest NFL.com mock draft
Trent Williams will be 36 at the start of the 2024 NFL season. While retirement isn't on his mind just yet, the San Francisco 49ers must consider a succession plan for left tackle.
NFL Media's Bucky Brooks unveiled his final mock draft, projecting the San Francisco 49ers to select former Arizona offensive tackle Jordan Morgan with the No. 31 overall pick as their eventual replacement for Williams.
"With Trent Williams entering the twilight of his career, the 49ers have to find an eventual replacement on the edge," Brooks noted. "Morgan is a sound blocker at the point of attack with diverse skills
Silver: New 49ers intel reveals potential Brandon Aiyuk trade still in play
When asked about the possibility of wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk not being on the San Francisco 49ers roster on Friday morning, general manager John Lynch responded, "I wouldn't anticipate that."
Lynch assured reporters that signing Aiyuk to a long-term extension is a priority, stating, "And our wish is that he's here and a part of the Niners for the rest of his career. We're working through that."
While Lynch didn't elaborate on the conversations occurring behind closed doors, Michael Silver of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that a potential trade remains a
NFL insider states the obvious regarding 49ers' talks with Brandon Aiyuk
ESPN insider Adam Schefter recently shared his insights on the situation surrounding San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk during an appearance on the network's "NFL Live" show. Schefter clarified that while Aiyuk would like to remain with the 49ers, his priority is securing a contract that reflects his value, regardless of the team.
When questioned about Aiyuk's desire to stay with the team that selected him in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, Schefter responded, "Well, I think his desire to get paid is greater than his desire to stay in San Francisco, wherever that is. If the 49ers want to pay him, I'm sure he'd love to stay in San Francisco. If another team would like to pay him, I'm sure he'd like to go
Brock Purdy weighs in on Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers contract talks
Brock Purdy set a San Francisco 49ers single-season record in 2023, throwing for 4,280 passing yards. Many of those yards came on passes to his top target, wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who amassed a team-leading and career-high 1,342 receiving yards.
Purdy and Aiyuk have developed great chemistry on the football field, and the quarterback would like to build upon that for years to come. However, that is out of his control, and Aiyuk's future is in the hands of the front office.
RELATED: John Lynch sends clear message regarding Brandon Aiyuk's future
Purdy trusts the process, acknowledging that the 49ers' decision-makers have done a commendable job
