The 49ers are making a free agency splash well before March 9: The club has agreed to a four-year, $16MM deal with defensive tackle Earl Mitchell, reports Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (Twitter link). The team announced the signing of the veteran lineman Saturday.
Mitchell, who will enter his age-30 season in 2017, came available when the Dolphins released him last week. The 49ers were among several teams to show interest in Mitchell, who also visited with the Seahawks, Broncos and Falcons. Mitchell would have made $4MM next season had the Dolphins retained him, but he’ll now rake in $5.5MM as a Niner, per Garafolo.
A seven-year veteran who went in the third round of the 2010 draft, Mitchell divided his career between Houston and Miami before reaching a deal with the 49ers. He has collected 100 appearances, 38 starts and 5.5 sacks to this point, and is coming off a season in which he only played nine games on account of a calf injury.
In his previous trip to free agency, in 2014, Mitchell landed a richer deal – four years and $19MM – though he did it as an in-his-prime player fresh off a 14-start season. While the full details of his new pact aren’t yet known, Mitchell has landed an impressive payday in the wake of both an injury-shortened season and a release. He’ll now join a 49ers defense that finished last season 28th in DVOA and will attempt to turn things around under new coordinator Robert Saleh.
So were basically signing all the guys getting cut now huh? Is he any good?
yes
A lot of guys get cut now to save cap space for free agency.
He is excellent. How do I know? Because all excellent defensive tackles sign 4 year deals for 16 million. Especially the ones who are so good they were released early. He will probably be a Hall of Famer. First ballot is possible, definitely second ballot.
Miami reported that Mitchell was released because they NEED cap space>IT.
Do you even watch football?
what’s this football you speak of? Hahahaha
If your computer is good enough for you to respond it should be good enough for you to research, DUH?
Look-up cap space. Furthermore ALL teams release players to create cap space. Is that simple enough aarongill? BTW make sure your computer can surf the web…
The more important question is whether or not he is better than whom we currently have at DT. And the answer to that question is yes.
not a bad signing in my opinion
I thought free agency doesn’t start until 3/9?
That’s when 2016-17 contracts expire, but since the Dolphins cut him he didn’t have a contract and could sign with anyone
Again try cap space NEEDED>IT.
They have the cap room and need to sign players. Let’s face it franchise has been really bad the last couple of years but it is still one of the better franchises in history and one of the best areas to live and play. Also with Lynch and Shanahan there are smart people in the organization. It is not going to be a quick rise to the top but if I were a player I would consider SF, would rather go there then LA Chargers or Jacksonville or a whole handful of teams that are terrible or play in terrible places to live.
THAN NOT then…
With Mitchell’s signature 49ers DL is pretty much set. The next step should be to address the LBs situation. I prefer they take AL LB Reuben Foster with their #2 first round draft pick.
He’d be a reach at number 2. I want them to trade down to 6-9 and take him or trade down to 11-14 and get mike Williams
Do any of you read the CSN Bay Area/Matt Maiocco articles? There are two character bloggers named Harry Berezin(HB) and his protegé the famous Alice a Bryn Mawr college freshman aka know it all just like HB.
HB is aloud mouth scrawny liberal jerk.