The San Francisco 49ers are facing tough decisions this offseason. They've let several key free agents leave for other teams and made minimal additions. As a result, the focus of their roster overhaul will have to shift to the 2025 NFL Draft.
According to OverTheCap.com, the 49ers have around $42 million in salary cap space, the 10th-most in the NFL. However, much of that cap room is allocated for the future, forcing the team to part ways with several fan-favorite veterans.
This offseason has been about limiting cash spending, as seen in moves like trading wide receiver Deebo Samuel before he was due a $15.4 million option bonus.
The team even briefly parted ways with its longest-tenured player, fullback Kyle Juszczyk, before re-signing him to a new two-year deal. The 49ers were upfront with Juszczyk about the financial woes.
Juszczyk revealed that team brass told him, "Yeah, this is a real thing; the financial restrictions we're under are a real thing," before his release.
The writing had been on the wall since February, when general manager John Lynch made it clear that this offseason would be different. The team could no longer afford to be big spenders in free agency.
"I think since Kyle and I have been here, we've been certainly a top five, I believe, number two, cash spending team in the four years," Lynch said at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. "Going into the fourth year, I think we're the fourth-highest cash-spending team, so at some point, you have to reset a little bit or at least recalibrate. You can't just keep pressing the pedal, and I think there's some good that could come out."
With quarterback Brock Purdy expected to receive a significant pay raise this offseason, the 49ers will have less salary cap flexibility in the coming years.
"Going into the offseason, without a full roster, or a single free-agent addition or draft pick, the Niners were at around $300 million in cap commitments," Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer recently wrote. "And after an injury-riddled 6–11 season, they had a choice. They could kick the can down the road again and make another hard run at a championship. Or they could rip the Band-Aid off and reset, with a quarterback's contract in the offing and an aging roster around him."
The 49ers have 11 selections in the upcoming draft, and with the many players they've lost this offseason, hitting on as many of those picks as possible will be crucial if they want to avoid a second consecutive down season.