The 2026 Free Agency Thread

skinsinparadise said:

Cash spending is generally the best measure of what a team is actually paying players in a given year. It's a better gauge of ownership's willingness to spend right now and whether they're truly pushing chips into the middle of the table.

For example, signing bonuses count as cash spending immediately because the player receives the money upfront. That's one reason teams like the Eagles under Jeffrey Lurie have been so aggressive. The player gets paid right away, while the team benefits from favorable cap treatment because the bonus is spread out over the life of the contract.

Let's say a player receives a $20 million signing bonus on a four-year deal. The player gets the $20 million now, but the cap hit is only $5 million per year for the next four seasons. It's a win for both sides: the player gets immediate cash, and the team gains cap flexibility.

So your point that free-agent spending isn't the best measure of overall spending is absolutely correct. In fact, it's especially misleading when discussing this team because of its preference for one-year contracts and constant roster turnover.

Take a simple example. Zach Ertz leaves and frees up salary. Chig Okonkwo arrives and gets paid. Free-agent spending only counts the Chig signing; it doesn't account for the money that came off the books when Ertz departed. It's like spending $20 on lasagna yesterday and $20 on pizza today. If you only count today's pizza purchase, you'd conclude I spent $20 more on food, when in reality my spending stayed exactly the same.

To their credit, the Commanders have increased their cash spending, moving from 18th to 12th in the league. That's a sign ownership is investing more in the roster. But it's also fair to say this hasn't looked like an all-in effort to maximize every year of Jayden Daniels' rookie contract. They've spent more, but not at the level of a team pushing every available resource toward a championship window.



AI Overview



Cash spending is widely considered the truest gauge of an owner's financial commitment to winning. While the salary cap acts as an artificial, league-mandated accounting budget, cash spending represents the actual dollar amount leaving an owner's bank account to pay player salaries and massive signing bonuses.

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One thing, and it's important: The cap WILL force equalization eventually. You can spend more cash in a given year than the cap through signing bonuses and other things, and defer the cap hit to later years. But at some point, there is a tipping point because you can only commit so many dollars because of the cap, and at some point, you are going to have to pull back on cash spending because you have no more available dollars to commit.

Now, you can manipulate the cap. And you can push that day off pretty far. But it's coming. One of these days, the Eagles are going to have to be one of the lowest cash spending teams in the league, maybe for a year, maybe 2, because the cap math will have caught up with the cash math.

I think this is where Roseman is really smart. He probably knows exactly when that day is going to be, and will dump everything into a year or two, spend virtually no cash, clear the cap, and then start his third rebuild.

Also, JUST spending cash isn't a recipe for success. Early Snyder spent OODLES of cash. Late Snyder, not so much. But early Snyder definitely did. He tried to buy a championship twice, once in 2000, and once in 2006. Both teams completely flamed out.

Even today, the best path to building a consistent roster is drafting well and developing those draft picks and supplementing with FA. Because FA classes are getting weaker and weaker, and competition for the top players is getting harder and harder.

I keep pointing to this: the biggest issue we have roster wise is the 5 players we picked in the 2nd and 3rd round of 2024 haven't developed into consistent starters: Newton, Sainristil, Sinnott, McCaffery, Coleman. 3 of those 5 should be locked in starters by year 3, and that didn't happen. The only one who is going to start next year is Sainristil, and he's coming off of a bad 2nd year.

If that draft class is a whiff, that's going to cause additional FA spending to replace the guys who should be contributing who you drafted.

As somewhat irrelevant notes: The 49ers cash spending on Spotrac is inflated by $26m because they are counting Aiyuk's salary. If you subtract that, they would drop to 13/14. Dallas' cash number is inflated because they're spending $40m on Dak. The Eagles are inflated because they are spending $51m on Hurts. And Buffalo is inflated because they are sending $55m on Josh Allen.

The Giants are interesting because they don't have that one big guy who they're spending money on.

Tunsil is our top cash guy at $34m. Second is Owe at $30, third is Styles. Which I find odd, but I guess that's because of the signing bonus of the #7 pick. I went back to look, Jayden Daniels was actually #1 in cash spending in 2024 at $24m. Followed by Cosmi then McLauren.

After looking at this a little more closely, I think we definitely COULD be spending more cash, but a number of the teams above, the reason they are spending the amount of cash they are is because of the QB, the 49ers are overstated. So there is context even to this number.

Link to Spotrac for cash, which is where I looked this stuff up. You can click on the team to see the accounting by player.

Voice_of_Reason said:

One thing, and it's important: The cap WILL force equalization eventually. You can spend more cash in a given year than the cap through signing bonuses and other things, and defer the cap hit to later years. But at some point, there is a tipping point because you can only commit so many dollars because of the cap, and at some point, you are going to have to pull back on cash spending because you have no more available dollars to commit.

Now, you can manipulate the cap. And you can push that day off pretty far. But it's coming. One of these days, the Eagles are going to have to be one of the lowest cash spending teams in the league, maybe for a year, maybe 2, because the cap math will have caught up with the cash math.

I think this is where Roseman is really smart. He probably knows exactly when that day is going to be, and will dump everything into a year or two, spend virtually no cash, clear the cap, and then start his third rebuild.

Also, JUST spending cash isn't a recipe for success. Early Snyder spent OODLES of cash. Late Snyder, not so much. But early Snyder definitely did. He tried to buy a championship twice, once in 2000, and once in 2006. Both teams completely flamed out.

Even today, the best path to building a consistent roster is drafting well and developing those draft picks and supplementing with FA. Because FA classes are getting weaker and weaker, and competition for the top players is getting harder and harder.

I keep pointing to this: the biggest issue we have roster wise is the 5 players we picked in the 2nd and 3rd round of 2024 haven't developed into consistent starters: Newton, Sainristil, Sinnott, McCaffery, Coleman. 3 of those 5 should be locked in starters by year 3, and that didn't happen. The only one who is going to start next year is Sainristil, and he's coming off of a bad 2nd year.

If that draft class is a whiff, that's going to cause additional FA spending to replace the guys who should be contributing who you drafted.

As somewhat irrelevant notes: The 49ers cash spending on Spotrac is inflated by $26m because they are counting Aiyuk's salary. If you subtract that, they would drop to 13/14. Dallas' cash number is inflated because they're spending $40m on Dak. The Eagles are inflated because they are spending $51m on Hurts. And Buffalo is inflated because they are sending $55m on Josh Allen.

The Giants are interesting because they don't have that one big guy who they're spending money on.

Tunsil is our top cash guy at $34m. Second is Owe at $30, third is Styles. Which I find odd, but I guess that's because of the signing bonus of the #7 pick. I went back to look, Jayden Daniels was actually #1 in cash spending in 2024 at $24m. Followed by Cosmi then McLauren.

After looking at this a little more closely, I think we definitely COULD be spending more cash, but a number of the teams above, the reason they are spending the amount of cash they are is because of the QB, the 49ers are overstated. So there is context even to this number.

Link to Spotrac for cash, which is where I looked this stuff up. You can click on the team to see the accounting by player.

2026 NFL Team Salary Cash Tracker

A real-time look at the 2026 salary cash totals for each NFL team.

www.spotrac.com

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Yeah, but Roseman can keep pulling those levers because the salary cap keeps exploding upward. There was a period where the cap barely moved from year to year, and pushing money into the future carried a lot more risk. That era is gone. With the cap rising dramatically almost every season, the Eagles have been able to be aggressive in the present while letting future cap growth absorb much of the pain. They can largely have their cake and eat it too.

As for cash spending, I'd personally like to see Washington spend more. Not because I believe in spending for the sake of spending, but because the Jayden Daniels rookie-contract window is a unique competitive advantage. Those opportunities don't come around often.

If Peters were consistently crushing drafts, I'd be more comfortable with a patient approach. But I don't think that's been the case. His 2024 draft, in my opinion, was somewhere between so-so and disappointing, though there's still time for some of those players to change that narrative. I liked the 2025 draft much more. I also like the 2026 class, but its TBD.

My point is that Peters has been solid, but not so dominant in the draft that it justifies passing on opportunities to supplement the roster more aggressively. On the other hand, I think he's generally done a good job when he's been active in free agency. Because of that, if I were Harris, I'd give him more ammunition and let him be more aggressive.

As Jeffrey Lurie said in the article that was posted, investing in the team isn't just about chasing wins—it also increases the value of the franchise. And to be clear, this isn't a criticism of Harris. I like what he's done and think he's been a massive upgrade as an owner.

skinsinparadise said:

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This is what I was expecting at some point, SIP. Eventually, shots were going to be fired through social media if things stayed the status quo, and I believe BA just fired the first one. I suspect mainstream media picks up on this shortly and makes a story out of it. Now, does this put some pressure on the 49ers? Seems to me they're dug in (mainly appears to be they're just plain petty at this point), but perhaps it might just push them to avoid the negative perception around the league and to the fans. Who's to say? But I believe its fixing to escalate. It was simply a matter of who was going to fire the first shot.

HTTR!

skinsinparadise said:

Cash spending is generally the best measure of what a team is actually paying players in a given year. It's a better gauge of ownership's willingness to spend right now and whether they're truly pushing chips into the middle of the table.

For example, signing bonuses count as cash spending immediately because the player receives the money upfront. That's one reason teams like the Eagles under Jeffrey Lurie have been so aggressive. The player gets paid right away, while the team benefits from favorable cap treatment because the bonus is spread out over the life of the contract.

Let's say a player receives a $20 million signing bonus on a four-year deal. The player gets the $20 million now, but the cap hit is only $5 million per year for the next four seasons. It's a win for both sides: the player gets immediate cash, and the team gains cap flexibility.

So your point that free-agent spending isn't the best measure of overall spending is absolutely correct. In fact, it's especially misleading when discussing this team because of its preference for one-year contracts and constant roster turnover.

Take a simple example. Zach Ertz leaves and frees up salary. Chig Okonkwo arrives and gets paid. Free-agent spending only counts the Chig signing; it doesn't account for the money that came off the books when Ertz departed. It's like spending $20 on lasagna yesterday and $20 on pizza today. If you only count today's pizza purchase, you'd conclude I spent $20 more on food, when in reality my spending stayed exactly the same.

To their credit, the Commanders have increased their cash spending, moving from 18th to 12th in the league. That's a sign ownership is investing more in the roster. But it's also fair to say this hasn't looked like an all-in effort to maximize every year of Jayden Daniels' rookie contract. They've spent more, but not at the level of a team pushing every available resource toward a championship window.



AI Overview



Cash spending is widely considered the truest gauge of an owner's financial commitment to winning. While the salary cap acts as an artificial, league-mandated accounting budget, cash spending represents the actual dollar amount leaving an owner's bank account to pay player salaries and massive signing bonuses.

Click to expand...

Thank you. That helps a lot. Though it does sound like a long way of saying the Eagles are spending more on talent than we are. So, I’m still not happy about it, but I do see one silver lining…

It seems a big reason why our “cash” spend is so high is that we are paying more of our contracts upfront. So in that respect I do feel better about things. It’s got to help us down the road with more future cap flexibility… The question is, will we really need it and will we actually use it.

Bottom line is for me I’d like to see a little less emphasis on building up future cap flexibility and a little more on beefing up the roster today. Teams like the Rams don’t worry much about cap flexibility down the road, yet, they still seem to be able to acquire an expensive player when the situation arises. We are being way too conservative for my taste, instead of taking advantage of the so-called holy Grail of having a franchise quarterback on a rookie contract.

skinsfan4128 said:

This is what I was expecting at some point, SIP. Eventually, shots were going to be fired through social media if things stayed the status quo, and I believe BA just fired the first one. I suspect mainstream media picks up on this shortly and makes a story out of it. Now, does this put some pressure on the 49ers? Seems to me they're dug in (mainly appears to be they're just plain petty at this point), but perhaps it might just push them to avoid the negative perception around the league and to the fans. Who's to say? But I believe its fixing to escalate. It was simply a matter of who was going to fire the first shot.

HTTR!

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IF the speculation is true, that the 49ers literally cancelled workouts out of spite, to prevent Aiyuk from reporting, then it's seriously going to start effecting the rest of that locker room.. Set aside what Aiyuk has done, but a team is willing to keep 90 guys off the field, to stick it to 1? That's crazy

HTTR said:

Thank you. That helps a lot. Though it does sound like a long way of saying the Eagles are spending more on talent than we are. So, I’m still not happy about it, but I do see one silver lining…

It seems a big reason why our “cash” spend is so high is that we are paying more of our contracts upfront. So in that respect I do feel better about things. It’s got to help us down the road with more future cap flexibility… The question is, will we really need it and will we actually use it.

Bottom line is for me I’d like to see a little less emphasis on building up future cap flexibility and a little more on beefing up the roster today. Teams like the Rams don’t worry much about cap flexibility down the road, yet, they still seem to be able to acquire an expensive player when the situation arises. We are being way too conservative for my taste, instead of taking advantage of the so-called holy Grail of having a franchise quarterback on a rookie contract.

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#12 is high but not big time so. I agree with your point about the Rams and the franchise QB rookie contract part big time.

skinsinparadise said:

If Diggs' game at this stage of his career is becoming more slot-centric, then he doesn't strike me as an obvious fit for either the Eagles or the Giants. The Giants already added Mooney, and the Eagles just drafted Lemon. You never know, but neither destination screams perfect match to me.

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Yeah, but from what I found, last year in New England, he played 30% of his snaps in the slot, and 70% outside, and had a 1000 yard season. From the New England reporter who was on Galdi, he said that Diggs doesn't have the top end speed anymore, but he's still really good at getting separation. And also, let's not forget, he was coming off a torn ACL last season, which he toreOctober 27, 2024. But he still played a lot outside and did really well.

If Diggs is seen as more of a slot, which again, that wasn't what he did last year in NE in a 1000 yard season, he wouldn't be a fit here either because we have like 4 guys we want to play in the slot already.

skinsinparadise said:

As much as I like Antonio Williams' potential, I'd still take a proven veteran who can realistically give you 1,000 yards in this receiving corps. Even if there's some overlap stylistically with what they already have, proven production matters. This offense still needs another receiver defenses have to account for.

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I think bringing him in to play slot I would disagree with. I also want to give Williams/McCaffery/Lane the opportunity to develop. If you don't give them the opportunity to do that, they can't do that. To me, if you're bringing in Diggs, you want him to play outside, like he did (mostly) in New England last year. That I'd be fine with. I wouldn't want to bring him here and then put the draft picks behind him in any way. Putting Burks/Brown/Van Jefferson behind him? I'm fine with that.

Ideally, McCaffery develops to be the other outside guy, and Williams is in the slot, with Burks/Brown backing up McCaffery and Lane backing up Williams. That's the absolute ideal scenario because then you've fixed the problem not for just this year, but for a couple years absent needing a replacement for Terry in a year or two.

But we need to see that happen. And we haven't seen it happen yet.

skinsinparadise said:

As far as Quinn touting Lane as the dude who is standing out as a breakout player, last year it was Quan Martin for him. I am glad but lol it doesn't move me until I see it in games.

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No disagreement. But it's at least notable that Lane is having a good camp. We'll see what happens from there.

skinsinparadise said:

Logan-Grant discussed Lane being good in camp last year but it not translating during the season.

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He was a rookie who basically had a ton of speed and could catch WR screens. That's really all he did at VT. Any thought he was going to be a polished receiver in year 1 was ludicrous to begin with. I liked the pick, but I saw him immediately as a ST contributor and a 2-3 year WR project.

skinsinparadise said:

Looking at the group of Burks, Dyami, Lane, McCaffrey, and Van Jefferson, if I had to bet on one player taking a meaningful step forward, it would probably be McCaffrey. Even then, I'm not sure he'll get enough opportunities if Antonio Williams establishes himself early. And while I can see one of those players emerging as a solid No. 3 option, I'd bet against any of them becoming a legitimate No. 2 receiver on a championship-level offense.

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IF Burks can stay healthy, he really could be that guy. He has ALL the physical tools. He could not stay healthy in Tennessee, and he was playing on a bad team with God Awful QB play. But he's currently a first round bust.

If you asked who has the physical ability to break out, I think it's Burks. If you asked who has the pedigree, it's McCaffery. I do think I've heard they are playing McCaffery outside more. I think Lane is still going to be a project, but can be productive. Van Jefferson is a very slightly better Noah Brown. They absolute ideal scenario is he doesn't make the team because the guys we drafted force him off the roster.

And I don't think any of them are #2 options. But I think the #2 option is Chig. I think slot is #3, and outside is #4. I CAN see one of them developing into a viable #4 option.

The key is can Williams develop quickly enough to be a #3 pass option in the slot? I don't know. But that's what they are banking on.

And keep in mind, the 2024 offense WAS championship caliber. And yeah, a lot of that was Daniels. But we drafted him at #2 to be that type of player. He's going to have to be that type of player. If he is playing at that level, and that's not just the amount he runs, but the precision in the passing game, then it IS possible to have a championship caliber offense with this group. He's got to do it though.

skinsinparadise said:

I also doubt Antonio Williams ends up being a full-time Z receiver. From what I've seen, he's more likely to play a heavy dose of slot while mixing in some snaps outside. Between Williams and Chig, there may not be many slot reps left for the backup receivers. That could leave Burks or Dyami with the best opportunity to carve out a meaningful role on the outside.

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From what I've heard, when they go 12 personnel, he'll slide outside and play the Z, and then when they go 11 personnel, he'll slide into the slot, and somebody else will play the Z.

I think they're going to be in 12 personnel A LOT. That's a somewhat informed guess based on reporting. But I wouldn't be surprised if you see a whole heck of a lot of McLaurin + Williams + Chig + Bates + RB as essentiatlly the base formation. With Bates rotating with Sinnott a bunch. I think they WANT that to be their base formation. And I could see them rotating the other WR spot a bunch, but I think they want Williams to win it.

And I think you're going to see them run out of that formation or go play action every time they are in it.

When they want to actually show a passing formation, they'll go 11 personnel with McLaurin + Williams (Slot) + Outside WR2 + Chig + RB (probably White). That will be their pass set.

skinsinparadise said:

Of course, all of that could become irrelevant if they eventually land Aiyuk, which I still think is the most likely outcome.

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I'm going to pretend Aiyuk doesn't exist in the universe until he shows up here and takes a snap and his leg doesn't fall off.

Primus Porcus said:

IF the speculation is true, that the 49ers literally cancelled workouts out of spite, to prevent Aiyuk from reporting, then it's seriously going to start effecting the rest of that locker room.. Set aside what Aiyuk has done, but a team is willing to keep 90 guys off the field, to stick it to 1? That's crazy

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Yeah lol, it would be ironic if SF derailed their season a bit with this distraction out of spite.

Also from what I understand Aiyuk is liked in their locker room so I doubt all the 49ers players are embracing this.

skinsinparadise said:

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OK this dude is weird. I don’t even know what he’s trying to say here. I’m still trusting peters knows a lot more than we do and if we sign him I’ll be OK with it. But it makes me nervous either way that this dude is even friends with Jayden. Part of me says the last thing we need is them spending even more time together. Can we just sign Diggs instead please???

skinsinparadise said:

Yeah, but Roseman can keep pulling those levers because the salary cap keeps exploding upward. There was a period where the cap barely moved from year to year, and pushing money into the future carried a lot more risk. That era is gone. With the cap rising dramatically almost every season, the Eagles have been able to be aggressive in the present while letting future cap growth absorb much of the pain. They can largely have their cake and eat it too.

As for cash spending, I'd personally like to see Washington spend more. Not because I believe in spending for the sake of spending, but because the Jayden Daniels rookie-contract window is a unique competitive advantage. Those opportunities don't come around often.

If Peters were consistently crushing drafts, I'd be more comfortable with a patient approach. But I don't think that's been the case. His 2024 draft, in my opinion, was somewhere between so-so and disappointing, though there's still time for some of those players to change that narrative. I liked the 2025 draft much more. I also like the 2026 class, but its TBD.

My point is that Peters has been solid, but not so dominant in the draft that it justifies passing on opportunities to supplement the roster more aggressively. On the other hand, I think he's generally done a good job when he's been active in free agency. Because of that, if I were Harris, I'd give him more ammunition and let him be more aggressive.

As Jeffrey Lurie said in the article that was posted, investing in the team isn't just about chasing wins—it also increases the value of the franchise. And to be clear, this isn't a criticism of Harris. I like what he's done and think he's been a massive upgrade as an owner.

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I don't disagree, and that point certainly holds for 2025. But honestly, there is a flip side: Ron left them an empty cupboard. There was almost nothing left. They drafted Daniels. The one thing I think Peters did which was absolutely brilliant is he didn't go out and sign a whole bunch of long term, locked in expensive contracts in year 1 because they had to figure out what they had in Daniels and they didn't want to get locked into any bad big money contracts early as a panic move. Peters did a masterful job in 2024 of signing guys who could play without mortgaging the future.

The problem was in 2025, they should have done more, like what the Patriots have done this year. They are entirely re-doing their receiving corps even though they got to the SB. Peters was somewhat more cautious, and made a couple bad mistakes. Now, they were aggressive in trading for Tunsil, which was huge. But other than that, the rest of the moves were not as aggressive. But at the same time, he was trying to provide long term flexibility. Hindsight being 20/20, they should have signed Diggs. But that would have been seen as a huge risk, because he was coming off a torn ACL in October 2024.

Now in 2026, they really did do just about everything they could do. They were "in on" everybody. Tried to pay a center a market resetting contract. Tried to pay Pierce more than he was worth. Same with Doubs. But they still landed Owe, Chig, and a bunch of others.

The big problem I see is they should have done this year last year. That was the mistake.

But it seems like he's learned from it.

skinsinparadise said:

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I certainly don't.

If the 49ers really canceled mandatory mini-camp out of spite, that would be the stupidest thing in the history of the NFL. I also don't believe it to be true. But this situation is so weird at this point, who knows.

Voice_of_Reason said:

Yeah, but from what I found, last year in New England, he played 30% of his snaps in the slot, and 70% outside, and had a 1000 yard season. From the New England reporter who was on Galdi, he said that Diggs doesn't have the top end speed anymore, but he's still really good at getting separation. And also, let's not forget, he was coming off a torn ACL last season, which he toreOctober 27, 2024. But he still played a lot outside and did really well.

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According to some stats someone put on here weeks ago, he was distinctly more effective from the slot. But to play along, the Eagles need an X, not a Z. Devonta Smith is Z. The Giants are a harder guess. Slayton I think is more of a Z. Nabers can play X but when is he back?

Voice_of_Reason said:

I think bringing him in to play slot I would disagree with. I also want to give Williams/McCaffery/Lane the opportunity to develop. If you don't give them the opportunity to do that, they can't do that.

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Sure. If its a rebuilding year. Maybe I am off and the national media is right that this team sucks and it truly does suck. I don't know will see. But for now I am more optimistic.

And if you are going to tout Lane from just buzz from a few practices. And you trust that enough to say its a sign for optimism. Why not trust a full camp? If we got a secret superstar on the roster, I've been to enough training camps to know its hard to miss on that in camp.

Voice_of_Reason said:

IF Burks can stay healthy, he really could be that guy. He has ALL the physical tools. He could not stay healthy in Tennessee, and he was playing on a bad team with God Awful QB play. But he's currently a first round bust.

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Don't know. This is the time of year for optimism, especially if you're looking to get excited about the upcoming season.

Speaking of that, Logan is a good example. Not long ago, he was talking about how Burks' profile isn't the type that typically succeeds in today's NFL—a raw route runner who relies heavily on contested catches. Then a few days later, after seeing Burks getting more reps at Z than anyone else, the conversation shifts to how exciting it is that Burks is getting that opportunity.

And look, I like Logan. I'd much rather have people covering the team with some enthusiasm than constant doom and gloom. But that contrast kind of captures what the offseason is all about. Every positive practice report, every depth-chart promotion, every "best shape of his life" story gets amplified because there are no games yet to challenge the narrative.

That's why I tend to take all of it with a grain of salt. The offseason is a wonderful time for optimism. Every team's young players are breaking out, every free-agent signing looks smart, every draft pick is ahead of schedule, and every roster question has an encouraging answer. Then the games start, and reality sorts out which storylines were real and which were just part of the annual offseason glow.

And i am not negative on any of it either. I am just over time much more cautious with my optimism.

Voice_of_Reason said:

He was a rookie who basically had a ton of speed and could catch WR screens. That's really all he did at VT. Any thought he was going to be a polished receiver in year 1 was ludicrous to begin with. I liked the pick, but I saw him immediately as a ST contributor and a 2-3 year WR project.

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I know, I was one of the people who posted on this before the draft and after they took him. Loved him as a PR. His hands were disappointing. but will see.

Voice_of_Reason said:

If you asked who has the pedigree, it's McCaffery. I do think I've heard they are playing McCaffery outside more.

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I've been listening to everything I can get my hands on, so far it seems like mostly slot for McCaffrey. Why McCaffrey for me? None of the other WRs stood out to me reading about their drive -- McCaffrey seems to have it.

Voice_of_Reason said:

And I don't think any of them are #2 options. But I think the #2 option is Chig. I think slot is #3, and outside is #4. I CAN see one of them developing into a viable #4 option.

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The thing is Ertz barely got any touches. He was a mile away from being their #2 in 2024 and then again in 2025. How unique it will be to have a TE as the #2? People are sleeping on for the first time Jayden having the TE as the #2 target for the first time in his career.

Voice_of_Reason said:

The key is can Williams develop quickly enough to be a #3 pass option in the slot? I don't know. But that's what they are banking on.

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No doubt they are banking big time on a third round WR to be an instant success. He was one of my guys in that draft class, but that's a lot of pressure on a rookie.

Voice_of_Reason said:

And keep in mind, the 2024 offense WAS championship caliber. And yeah, a lot of that was Daniels. But we drafted him at #2 to be that type of player. He's going to have to be that type of player. If he is playing at that level, and that's not just the amount he runs, but the precision in the passing game, then it IS possible to have a championship caliber offense with this group. He's got to do it though.

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Yep and if healthy Jayden would have led the league in rushing. Can Jayden do it again, 2024 style, just run baby when your Wr aren't open? Sure. Fingers crossed he doesn't get hurt. But for me for them to duplicate the 2024 season, we need to see a lot of running out of Jayden like that year. 60 yards a game rushing from him give or take.

Voice_of_Reason said:

I certainly don't.

If the 49ers really canceled mandatory mini-camp out of spite, that would be the stupidest thing in the history of the NFL. I also don't believe it to be true. But this situation is so weird at this point, who knows.

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Eh, Shanny has a reputation for being spiteful and petty (cant say the same about Lynch, but if he's going along with it he's just as culpable, IMO). Im certainly not saying that's the case here, but there's definitely reasons to believe its so.

Could it be that the 49ers caught wind that BA was going to attend the mandatory mini camp? Perhaps. Had they convinced themselves that BA was going to continue to stay in his self-imposed purgatory and was caught off guard when they learned he would attend? Quite possibly.

I agree that the situation is weird (and imo, that's putting it mildly), but there's rough smoke here to see that neither side is grabbing the firehose to put out the flame. And yes, I believe that Kyle is this petty cause we've seen this out of him (and his dad for that matter) when he feels slighted.

HTTR!

As for the TE point I made, the sarcasm isn't directed at anyone in particular. But I will admit I'm getting a little worn out by the idea that people are somehow overlooking a revolutionary concept—that this team doesn't need a true No. 2 receiver because the tight end can be the second option in the passing game.

That's not exactly a new idea.

Look, I understand why people are excited about Chig. I am too. I pushed for him repeatedly in the free-agent thread because I think he's younger, more explosive, and has more upside than what they had before.

But let's not act like Jayden has never had a tight end serving as a major part of the offense. Zach Ertz was his security blanket on third down, in the red zone, and in critical situations all season. Chig may ultimately be a better player, will see, but the basic concept of the tight end being a featured option isn't some new wrinkle that's suddenly going to solve the receiver issue.

And more importantly, these aren't mutually exclusive ideas.

You can have a good tight end and two quality receivers at the same time. In fact, that's what a lot of the league's best offenses strive for. Nobody looks at a team with an excellent tight end and says, "Great, now we don't need another weapon." The best offenses keep stacking options because defenses have to account for all of them.

So when I hear the argument that Chig's presence lessens the need for a legitimate No. 2 receiver, I don't really buy it. To me, the existence of a good tight end isn't a substitute for another proven pass catcher. It's an argument for having even more firepower, not less.

skinsinparadise said:

According to some stats someone put on here weeks ago, he was distinctly more effective from the slot. But to play along, the Eagles need an X, not a Z. Devonta Smith is Z. The Giants are a harder guess. Slayton I think is more of a Z. Nabers can play X but when is he back?

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The Eagles also drafted Lemon, who is mostly a slot. If I was them, I would grab Diggs and then have another 1000 yard receiver to do something with.

skinsinparadise said:

Sure. If its a rebuilding year. Maybe I am off and the national media is right that this team sucks and it truly does suck. I don't know will see. But for now I am more optimistic.

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And here is where I differ philosophically, maybe. I don't think you allow Daniels' contract situation to dictate how you develop the guys on your roster, because that's a short term fix and then you're going to have to keep fixing it if you don't develop your draft picks.

So I'm not sure if I care if it's a rebuilding year or not. If they want to have sustained success, they need to solve this problem once and for all, and by brining in a guy that stifles the growth who's in his mid 30's doesn't help that and you're looking again next year.

If Daniels is who we think he is, there shouldn't be a true rebuilding year for the next 10 years. A top 5 QB should be able to keep the team competitive basically no matter what while you switch pieces in and out behind them. It's what, year 7 of Mahomes before they had a bad year? Allen hasn't had one yet to my memory. The only times the Ravens aren't in the playoffs is when Lamar gets hurt. Burrow is a different story because he's playing for a Jay Gruden clone, who's a born dumbass loser, just like the original Jay Gruden. In fact, they should fire the clone and go all in and hire Jay Gruden to help Burrows' teams underperform.

Anyway, there won't be a rebuilding year under Daniels. Or there shouldn't be. Ever. So you have to develop your draft picks.

skinsinparadise said:

And if you are going to tout Lane from just buzz from a few practices. And you trust that enough to say its a sign for optimism. Why not trust a full camp? If we got a secret superstar on the roster, I've been to enough training camps to know its hard to miss on that in camp.

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I'm not sure what you're saying here. And I'm not touting Lane. I think it's positive he's looked good, and it's interesting Quinn singled him out. I'd like to see more of that movie though...

skinsinparadise said:

Don't know. This is the time of year for optimism, especially if you're looking to get excited about the upcoming season.

Speaking of that, Logan is a good example. Not long ago, he was talking about how Burks' profile isn't the type that typically succeeds in today's NFL—a raw route runner who relies heavily on contested catches. Then a few days later, after seeing Burks getting more reps at Z than anyone else, the conversation shifts to how exciting it is that Burks is getting that opportunity.

And look, I like Logan. I'd much rather have people covering the team with some enthusiasm than constant doom and gloom. But that contrast kind of captures what the offseason is all about. Every positive practice report, every depth-chart promotion, every "best shape of his life" story gets amplified because there are no games yet to challenge the narrative.

That's why I tend to take all of it with a grain of salt. The offseason is a wonderful time for optimism. Every team's young players are breaking out, every free-agent signing looks smart, every draft pick is ahead of schedule, and every roster question has an encouraging answer. Then the games start, and reality sorts out which storylines were real and which were just part of the annual offseason glow.

And i am not negative on any of it either. I am just over time much more cautious with my optimism.

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I agree with all of this, with one caveat. I think we were hearing, already at this time last year, something was off. It was cautiously "reported." But something wasn't right. It started in OTAs an Mini-Camps. And was more obvious in training camp.

skinsinparadise said:

I know, I was one of the people who posted on this before the draft and after they took him. Loved him as a PR. His hands were disappointing. but will see.

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The biggest jump guys make is from year 1 to 2.

skinsinparadise said:

I've been listening to everything I can get my hands on, so far it seems like mostly slot for McCaffrey. Why McCaffrey for me? None of the other WRs stood out to me reading about their drive -- McCaffrey seems to have it.

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I've heard both. But who knows. The reporters have seen 2 of 6 practices.

skinsinparadise said:

The thing is Ertz barely got any touches. He was a mile away from being their #2 in 2024 and then again in 2025. How unique it will be to have a TE as the #2? People are sleeping on for the first time Jayden having the TE as the #2 target for the first time in his career.

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I don't know what you're trying to say here. Ertz was great for this team, but he wasn't explosive. He was a 3rd down and red zone target, but he couldn't stretch the field. Chig is the exact opposite. He hasn't been a reliable 3rd down or red zone target, but he can stretch the field. We'll see how that plays out.

skinsinparadise said:

No doubt they are banking big time on a third round WR to be an instant success. He was one of my guys in that draft class, but that's a lot of pressure on a rookie.

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It's a big gamble. I think if things don't go well in the next 2 weeks, if Diggs is still available (I think he will be), then you could see a signing. I don't thnk Diggs is going to sign with anybody until just before training camp.

skinsinparadise said:

Yep and if healthy Jayden would have led the league in rushing. Can Jayden do it again, 2024 style, just run baby when your Wr aren't open? Sure. Fingers crossed he doesn't get hurt. But for me for them to duplicate the 2024 season, we need to see a lot of running out of Jayden like that year. 60 yards a game rushing from him give or take.

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I think the style of offense is going to mitigate Daniels running. They want to run the ball 50% of the time and they're going to put Daniels under center a lot more. There will still be some designed runs, but there aren't going to be as many.

But honestly, if you drafted a dual threat QB at #2 but you're afraid to have him run, you made the wrong pick and should have drafted Maye. In order for him to be effective, he has to run. That's part of his game. And that's why they spent the #2 pick on him and not Maye. Or any other QB.

If folks want to count the TE as a WR, then the obvious retort to that is 'we really really need a WR3'

skinsfan4128 said:

Eh, Shanny has a reputation for being spiteful and petty

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He does? I really haven't heard that. Except from our fans, who were so brilliant that they wanted him and the rest of the Shanahan staff run out of town which has now produced like 7 other successful head coaches...

Boone said:

If folks want to count the TE as a WR, then the obvious retort to that is 'we really really need a WR3'

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Chuckle. We need a 4th receiving option in the passing game. How about that?