49ers Release Anthony Davis

The 49ers have released offensive tackle Anthony Davis, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). With that, the 29-year-old is now a free agent and eligible to speak to other teams. The NFL reinstated Davis from the reserve-retired list Tuesday.

Davis announced his retirement after the 2014 season and returned for one game in 2016 before retiring once again, citing concerns about concussions. But, earlier this month, Davis filed paperwork for reinstatement.

This does throw an interesting lineman into the free agent mix, based strictly on his work when he was a full-time starter. But that was five years ago.

The No. 11 overall pick in the 2010 draft, Davis played 16 games as San Francisco’s starting right tackle for four straight seasons. He started in each of the 49ers’ three NFC championship games earlier this decade and Super Bowl XLVII. But since the end of the 2013 season, Davis has played just eight games.

Coming into the NFL as a 20-year-old rookie nine years ago, Davis will not turn 30 until midway through this coming season. But it will obviously be difficult for a team that considers him to be convinced he will stick with football. That said, any Davis deal would likely qualify as a flier and be a low-risk addition, financially speaking. The Saints signed Derek Newton last year, after the former Texans right tackle starter missed more than two years due to severe knee injuries. Without those kind of injury concerns, it would not be too difficult to see a team inquiring about Davis.