Last season, K.J. Wright found himself doing something he never thought he would—playing for a team not named the Seattle Seahawks. A free agent last year, the star linebacker saw no issues signing with the division-rival San Francisco 49ers. He was just waiting for that call. Any call, really, from an interested team.
He waited, and those calls never came. Wright couldn't figure out why. He had put together quite a resume during his 10 years in Seattle, accumulating 941 tackles, 66 tackles for a loss, 27 quarterback hits, 13.5 sacks, and six interceptions. He was a Pro Bowl player and a Super Bowl champion. The linebacker was even willing to take a reduced role, so long as the offer wasn't insulting.
He continued waiting. Still no calls.
The Las Vegas Raiders eventually expressed interest, and Wright signed on September 6, 2021. However, one other team had reached out before that—the 49ers. Needless to say, Wright was interested.
The linebacker joined Will Compton on the Bussin' With the Boys podcast, sharing how that conversation with the 49ers went.
"[General manager] John Lynch called me," Wright said (h/t Ty Dane Gonzales of Sports Illustrated). "He's like, 'K.J., what's up, man? I see you're still a free agent.' I was like, 'Yeah, you noticed?' He was like, 'Man, we would love to get you out here, would love to get you out here, man. You know, we've always watched you. We thought it was a no-brainer that you would sign with Seattle.' That's what he said, and I was like, 'Yeah, you know, that didn't happen.' And so, 'Yeah, man, wanna come out here and get a visit in?'"
Wright revealed that he never went on that visit. However, he did receive an offer—a one-year deal worth $1.075 million, the league's minimum salary for a veteran.
In their defense, the 49ers didn't end up having much to spend during the season and were probably trying to save as much as they could. The team had a small surplus of salary-cap space and couldn't make a significant offer without some financial creativity.
Wright, however, saw the offer as disrespectful and passed.
The linebacker went on to record 51 tackles and two tackles for a loss through 17 games (eight starts) with the Raiders, reaching the playoffs. The 49ers also did fine without him, reaching the NFC Championship Game for the second time in three seasons.
