With a full year under their belt, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch helped devise a new strategy for the team’s free-agent approach.
Rather than list the top five players in their opinion at each position they were looking to address, then go down the list until agreeing to terms with a player, they identified specific players of interest they believed were fits. This offseason, that included center Weston Richburg and running back Jerick McKinnon, who were both signed by the 49ers.
“It started with the foundation of John and Kyle being on the same page on how we want to build our team and this is ultimately where we want to get to, and we want to get to sustainable success,” 49ers CEO Jed York said, via Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area.
Of course, the 49ers’ most notable move of the offseason came in the form of a three-year deal for cornerback Richard Sherman. The team officially introduced Sherman on Thursday.
Here’s more from around the AFC/NFC West
- Former Broncos wide receiver and current free agent Eric Decker is back in Denver but for personal reasons, per Mike Klis of 9News (on Twitter), but he does not have a visit scheduled with his former employer at the moment.
- Ndamukong Suh‘s $14MM base salary with the Rams is fully guaranteed, according to Albert Breer of The MMQB (on Twitter). With incentives, he can push the value of the deal to $15MM.
- The Chiefs, along with the Titans and Texans, hosted Kansas pass rusher Dorance Armstrong Jr. for a visit, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). Though he played as a 4-3 defensive end in college, Wilson notes he’s likely destined to work as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme in the NFL. Armstrong is projected to go as early as the third round in the upcoming draft.
- While speaking on a podcast with ESPN’s Adam Schefter, John Elway said the Broncos still haven’t decided on the direction it’ll take with the No. 5 pick in the draft. That direction could still include the team taking a quarterback at No. 5, even after signing quarterback Case Keenum. “That’ll be wide open,” Elway said, via ESPN’s Jeff Legwold. ” … I’m betting we won’t know what direction we’re going to go until probably the day of [the first round] or the day before.”