With quarterback Matthew Stafford being sent to the Los Angeles Rams a month ago, and star defensive end J.J. Watt agreeing to a two-year deal with the Arizona Cardinals yesterday, the NFC West division has gotten a lot stronger. Looking at it right now, the Seahawks, Rams, and Cardinals all seem to be strong playoff contenders, while the 49ers front office is stagnant. They haven’t made any major moves so far this offseason, while everyone around them is getting better. There is only so much the Niners can do to get atop the division, due to salary cap restrictions and other financial burdens. Here is my ideal plan for what the 49ers should do.
1. Get rid of Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo
Jimmy G has had his ups and downs during his 3 and a half-year tenure with the San Francisco 49ers, to say the least. Ever since being given a 5-year, 137.5 million dollar contract, Garoppolo has been injury-riddled, suffering a torn ACL in 2018 and a severe high ankle sprain in 2020. He was part of the 2019 Super Bowl runner-up 49ers team; however I credit that season mostly to every aspect of the team besides Jimmy Garoppolo. After all, he only threw 8 passes in the NFC Championship victory against the Green Bay Packers that year. Frankly, he has been a below average quarterback who is barely on the field, needing the perfect situation around him to be successful. His contract is far too hefty for the 49ers to keep him around any longer, and freeing up 24 million dollars by cutting or trading him is completely worth it, since an upgrade at the helm is needed anyway.
2. Re-sign Left Tackle Trent Williams and Cornerback Jason Verrett
The left tackle position on the offensive line is one of the most important positions in football. With a great offensive line, the quarterback is protected, the running backs have an easier time, and the offensive as a whole opens up. Trent Williams has been one of the most dominant offensive linemen over the past decade, and resigning him is the number 1 priority, especially with defensive end J.J. Watt signing with the Arizona Cardinals. Although Williams will cost a lot, probably around 20 million dollars a year, it is worth it to secure one of the best in the business.
Since being a first round draft pick in 2014, cornerback Jason Verrett has suffered two torn ACL injuries, along with knee and ankle injuries. Last year, as he got an opportunity to prove himself as being worth a first round pick, he had 4 games allowing 10 or less yards to wide receivers, which was tied for 6th in the league. Richard Sherman will not return to the 49ers this season, making it vital that they re-sign a proven corner in Verrett.
3. Sign Veterans Ryan Fitzpatrick and Alex Mack
Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick has hopped around teams his whole career, as he has been on 8, and he is currently a free agent. He has been fairly successful throughout his 16-year career, but has never been good enough to take a team over the top. However, he is the perfect candidate to be a “bridge” quarterback, or someone who can fill in during the transition to a young quarterback for the future. He is arguably better than Jimmy Garoppolo, extremely cheap, and is a veteran presence for the rookie quarterback that the 49ers should take in the upcoming 2021 NFL draft.
Offensive lineman Alex Mack is another veteran player who would help the 49ers, but would have a much larger impact on the team. He has been a very good offensive lineman throughout his 12-year career, and the 49ers need significant help on the offensive line, as it was a major problem last season. Signing Alex Mack would be ideal as it wouldn’t be very harmful to the salary cap, and Center is a position in need for the 49ers.
4. Draft Ohio State Quarterback Justin Fields and address other positions-in-need in the Draft
The 49ers own pick #12 overall in the draft, and Fields, being ranked amongst the top 3-4 quarterbacks in the draft, would likely warrant a top 7 pick, at least. So, the 49ers would most likely have to trade up to at least pick 7 with the Detroit Lions, but may have to go as high as pick 4 with the Atlanta Falcons to acquire the promising young quarterback. Although he may not be very polished, Fields has arguably the most upside of any quarterback in this draft, and could easily turn out to be a superstar in the NFL under the right coaching and mentorship. This is exactly where a veteran quarterback like Ryan Fitzpatrick comes in handy, as well as one of the best offensive minds in the NFL, head coach Kyle Shanahan. To add to that, Fields has already been with Coach Shanahan, as Fields attends Shanahan's Quarterback School.
With the rest of their selections in the draft, the 49ers should look at players like cornerback Ifeatu Melifonwu, a physical player who could complement the smaller-sized Jason Verrett very well. Another player the 49ers should consider in the 2nd or 3rd round is offensive lineman Quinn Meinerz, who impressed scouts at the senior bowl and is a massive presence to solidify the 49ers offensive line. The 49ers should also try to target an edge rusher in the draft, as one of the starting edge rushers for the 49ers, Dee Ford, has been very injury-prone and ineffective. One edge rusher to target in the later rounds would be DE Daelin Hayes out of Notre Dame, who was another impressive player at the Senior Bowl and would complement star DE Nick Bosa very well on the other side of the defensive line.
5. Cut Dee Ford and Weston Richburg after June 1st
Defensive End Dee Ford and Center Weston Richburg have been injury-prone during their time with the 49ers, making them largely ineffective and very overpaid, which is limiting the flexibility of the front office to make moves. Ford is currently making 20 million dollars per year while Richburg is making 11 million dollars per year. Their cap hits are 14 million dollars and 8 million dollars, respectively, if the Niners were to cut them right now. However, if the 49ers were to cut the two after June 1st, their cap hits would be about 5 million dollars and 3 million dollars each for the coming year, which would save a total of 23 million dollars in cap space for the next league year, as opposed to saving just 9 million dollars immediately. Although cutting Ford and Richburg immediately would help a little more to give the 49ers a better chance to improve their roster for next season, waiting until June 1st is a lot more worth it, as they would save an extra 14 million dollars.
Making these moves this offseason would significantly improve the 49ers chances of being a contender in the extremely competitive NFC West. They would have their high-upside quarterback of the future along with a serviceable veteran, a greatly bolstered offensive and defensive line, along with a solid secondary. With the weapons on offense and one of the top coaches in the league, these roster changes in the offseason could help the team get back into Super Bowl contention in the near future.
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