Advanced statistics site
Pro Football Focus ranked the five worst edge defender contracts on Friday, which lists the five most overpaid players at that position. San Francisco 49ers outside linebacker
Ahmad Brooks came in as the second worst in the league.
One of the factors in
Pro Football Focus' list was length of contract. Brooks only has two years remaining on his contract and averaged nearly $4.9 million during the first four years – which is not bad. Over the next two seasons, that number balloons to over $8.3 million per year.
"Brooks was playing well when he first signed his six-year, $37 million contract, but he hasn't made the sort of impact required since 2012," says John Breitenbach of
Pro Football Focus. "Not since 2013 has he graded positively as a pass-rusher. Brooks managed only 35 combined pressures in 399 snaps a year ago, finishing with a 47.6 pass-rush grade."
RELATED Where does Colin Kaepernick's contract rank among quarterbacks?
While he did have a 47.6 pass-rush grade according to
Pro Football Focus, he also had a higher 79.5 run-defense grade. An overall 53.4 grade left Brooks as the 88th overall edge defender according to the site. By comparison, teammate
Aaron Lynch ranked 29th while
Eli Harold ranked 74th.
We reached out to
Pro Football Focus analyst and 49ers media correspondent Jeff Deeney to get
his thoughts on the ranking. "I can't argue with it. He's 32, hasn't been that good the last two years, $8.3M cap hit, and has been a distraction at times," he responded.
Lastly, the site factored in the season in which the team can cut the player and have more cap savings than dead money. For Brooks, that has been the case since last season. In 2016, they would see nearly $3.2 million in dead money if they were to cut him. However, in 2017, that number drops significantly to $848,750.
Brooks' contract ranks as the fourth highest among the team in cap hit, behind only
QB Colin Kaepernick,
ILB NaVorro Bowman, and
OT Joe Staley. He also ranks fourth in base salary behind the same three players. His cap hit is a staggering ninth among all outside linebackers in the NFL.
In 2015, Brooks was in on 763 snaps with 427 coming against the pass. He compiled 42 tackles, 6.5 sacks, and a pass defended last season.
Ahmad Brooks' contract at a glance
Signed through: 2017
Average remaining base salary per year: $5.93 million
Average remaining cap hit per year: $8.33 million
2016 base salary: $4.9 million
2017 base salary: $6.95 million
2016 cap hit: $8 million
2017 cap hit: $8.65 million
* Cap numbers from Spotrac.com
Rohan Chakravarthi and Jessie Naylor break down Day 1 of the San Francisco 49ers OTAs that was available to media.
The audio for the show is embedded above, while the video is available below.
You can listen to "The Rohan Chakravarthi Show" from our dedicated podcast page, on
Kyle Shanahan praises his quarterback room every year. Last season, the San Francisco 49ers went through three starting quarterbacks and still made it to the NFC Championship Game. Trey Lance was the Week 1 starter but suffered a season-ending ankle injury during his second game. Eleven weeks later, Jimmy Garoppolo sustained a broken foot.
That opened the door for rookie Brock Purdy to show his coaches and the NFL world that he belonged, despite being the last overall pick in the draft. Purdy guided the 49ers to eight consecutive wins before suffering a severe injury in that NFC title game matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Two of the quarterbacks from last season—Lance and Purdy—remain. Both are just 23 years old. They are joined by Sam
The San Francisco 49ers entered the offseason with several questions after key figures, such as Jimmie Ward, Mike McGlinchey, Samson Ebukam, and Charles Omenihu, departed in free agency, creating the possibility for position battles in organized team activities(OTAs) and training camp.
While several of the starting spots are solidified, there are still a few position battles to watch, as well as depth questions that could allow younger players to compete and take 53-man roster spots at the end of the offseason.
Let's break down some of those battles to watch and how they could play out for the 49ers, outside of the obvious competition at
Rohan Chakravarthi and Suneil discuss the quarterback competition and position battles to watch during the San Francisco 49ers' OTAs.
The audio for the show is embedded above, while the video is available below.
?feature=share
You can listen to "The Rohan Chakravarthi Show" from our
