With free agency opening next week, we preview what to expect from the San Francisco 49ers in the second year of the John Lynch-Kyle Shanahan regime.
San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch has said they are going to be “aggressively prudent” in free agency. So expect them to be suitors for a number of the top players on the open market.
With Jimmy Garoppolo locked in as the Niners’ franchise quarterback, this offseason is all about San Francisco putting better talent around a signal-caller who went 5-0 as a starter following his trade from the New England Patriots.
The Niners have plenty of holes to fill on both sides of the ball, and here we preview what to expect from San Francisco in free agency.
Needs
Offense: RB, WR, Interior OL
Defense: EDGE, LB, CB
For a team that finished the season with just 30 sacks, the absolute top need is edge rusher, though there does not appear to be the talent in free agency for the 49ers to address the position on the open market.
An experienced corner to start across from Ahkello Witherspoon, who enjoyed an extremely promising season, would be a significant boost to a secondary that lacks experience, while the linebacker position has been thrust into the spotlight again, with insurance needed after Reuben Foster’s two arrests.
Though Brandon Fusco performed serviceably at guard, better interior protection is needed for Garoppolo despite his evident knack for throwing with pressure in his face.
Despite Marquise Goodwin’s emergence with Garoppolo under center and the prospective return of Pierre Garcon from injury, the 49ers could really benefit from adding a true No. 1 receiver, particularly one who can help San Francisco fix the red zone woes that continued even with Garoppolo as starter. Per Team Rankings, the 49ers finished 27th in red zone touchdown scoring percentage, punching the ball in just 47.06 percent of the time.
With no deal seemingly imminent to re-sign Carlos Hyde, another running back to go with Matt Breida — coming off an impressive rookie season in which he had 645 yards from scrimmage — and Joe Williams, who missed his rookie year through injury, should also be on the 49ers’ shopping list.