The 2026 Free Agency Thread

[method man]

He has I noticed a few defenders here on what he did at WR. But I couldn't disagree more. And this coming from one of the bigger defenders of the Deebo trade. I don't think even the team would agree with those who defend it at this point.

Keim has said talking to his sources with the team they knew they were risking at it WR and Edge and that their roster wasn't complete. Keim also said Peters was banking on Osborn, Chris Moore, Gallup to replace the depth they lost, and gambled wrong on it. Standig went right at Peters about Noah at Z and basically nicely said why did you think the WR room would work out considering the lack of depth. Peters response was there were targets but ended up out of their price range and there were lessons learned from it.

A. Deebo is a gadget WR. He's not an outside WR. He's the cherry on top, not the ice cream. He's a great cherry on top, thought.

B. Trusting Noah Brown as your Z. When he never stays healthy. He's over 30. And wasn't even healthy in the off season. That is absurd. It was as Bruce Allen, Rivera level dumb and arrogant.

C. Being disappointed that your street level FAs, Moore, Osborn, Gallup ended up sucking is wild to me. What a shock! Again it came off arrogant, hey I can take my uber eats driver and have him produce. I am Adam "Fing" Peters, same dude who found Zaccheus for peanuts. Same dude who will showcase that wasn't some one off lucky break, I can find WRs on the cheap from the street, just you watch!

D. When Moore was struggiling at X to replace Terry and sucked and a reporter said they asked someone from the team why Moore keeps getting those starts and the response was he's the only one on the team who knows the routes at X. Wow, talking about lack of depth.

So you got an injury prone Noah Brown as your Z WR, with no legit Z backup let alone X backup. And heck lets have ourselves a season!

Deebo they used at slot. McCaffrey is a natural slot. Lane also a slot and by their own admission they see as a punt returner not a WR in year one, in Virginia Tech he was raw as a route runner.

Compare that to how aggressive the Bears have been to add weapons, its an absolute joke to compare. Noah wouldn't even make it on the Bears roster let alone be slated as the starting Z.

E. Not signing Bourne after his visit at the end of camp when a lifeline was thrown his way

 

[skinsinparadise]

On that list, I'd rather sign Mafe than Likely.

And the idea that Harris won't run high payrolls is false--the Sixers are top-5 payroll per Google (I don't know for sure, I hate the NBA)

Looks like they are 8th. But yeah I do guess that Harris is willing to spend. And if he's the good business person I believe he is, he will spend big this time.

They were 15th in FA spending last year but had three trades where they absorbed more salary. And if you are basically going for three marquee players and that's it. One of those three trades, can't be an F. You can survive a C if the other two trades go well IMO but not an F -- i am talking about the Lattimore trade. You give up three picks and 18 million in salary -- and the dude not only isn't great but he isn't even medicore, he sucked. That's three draft picks and 18 million wasted.

 

[RedWolf]

Anybody heard anything about Tunsil?

 

[DWinzit]

E. Not signing Bourne after his visit at the end of camp when a lifeline was thrown his way

I think this is bigger than some of these other miscues. This guy fell in their lap and was just what the doctor ordered to what was lacking

 

[Chris 44]

Anybody heard anything about Tunsil?

I went searching a couple days ago and then earlier today. Just rehashing of old news/speculation. Be nice to get a deal in place early, especially before free agency hits, make a determination on who we are releasing and get a good handle on the money available prior to FA.

 

[Riggo44]

E. Not signing Bourne after his visit at the end of camp when a lifeline was thrown his way

Okay, Bourne is kinda like the receiver version of Forbes--two blow up games, totalling 15 rec. 284 yrds. After that: 14 rec. 180 yrds over the next 11 games.

 

[COWBOY-KILLA]

if they want to seriously compete next year there is no way around having to spend and spend big this year. Aint no two ways about this. We need talent in a bad way all over the D and at WR and TE... So lets friggen go!

 

[mcdonaldrw]

if they want to seriously compete next year there is no way around having to spend and spend big this year. Aint no two ways about this. We need talent in a bad way all over the D and at WR and TE... So lets friggen go!

And most importantly a Kicker. Lets lock down someone that can actually kick for a change.

 

[Conn]

I think this is bigger than some of these other miscues. This guy fell in their lap and was just what the doctor ordered to what was lacking

Yeah. I felt he was supposed to be this year’s Noah Brown (guy available at just the right time for a role we needed) but we fumbled it.

To be fair I think he really wanted to be in SF and used us as leverage, if anything. And to be even fairer he was right, they had a much better season and he had already been there before.

 

[DWinzit]

Okay, Bourne is kinda like the receiver version of Forbes--two blow up games, totalling 15 rec. 284 yrds. After that: 14 rec. 180 yrds over the next 11 games.

He would have been better than Chosen, Moore, Jones, Martin, Osborn, Gallup or even what we got from Brown. And he had more competition on the Niners roster than he had with ours

 

[Conn]

Okay, Bourne is kinda like the receiver version of Forbes--two blow up games, totalling 15 rec. 284 yrds. After that: 14 rec. 180 yrds over the next 11 games.

Mainly because they eventually got Pearsall back, Bourne’s never been a stud but he’s just a steady, reliable guy who can block on the outside. He would’ve likely accumulated more touches with us but clearly he made the right choice in terms of having an enjoyable season on a good team.

 

[Riggo44]

He would have been better than Chosen, Moore, Jones, Martin, Osborn, Gallup or even what we got from Brown. And he had more competition on the Niners roster than he had with ours

Fact. But it's kind of like Dyami Brown and OZ---we weren't winning or losing games because of Kendrick Bourne

 

[Bulldog]

I think at wide receiver we need to find a player that can work with Daniels over the next 3-4 years and be a guy that can be a primary option if Terry McLaurin in 2026 gets dinged and misses time.

He's going to be expensive but Alec Pierce looking down the list of free agents is a player that fits where we want to go on offense - he's 25, has explosive down the field ability and has been a consistent producer in his most recent seasons with the Colts.

 

[KDawg]

We need to come away from this offseason with:

Tunsil re-signed long term - if not - trade him right now. Don’t want to do the second part, but the Tunsil deal cannot linger.
Possession Receiver (can be a tight end)
Vertical Threat
Bellcow Back
Guard
Middle backer (possibly x2)
Edge x2
Safety x2

These are minimums.

I could expand, but I’ll leave the list here.

Whatever we have to do to get these spots taken care of makes sense to me.

 

[Voice_of_Reason]

if they want to seriously compete next year there is no way around having to spend and spend big this year. Aint no two ways about this. We need talent in a bad way all over the D and at WR and TE... So lets friggen go!

Removed because it was a bad post.

 

[Voice_of_Reason]

Payne is going to play out his contract here because we have enough defensive holes, and solely for that reason

RedWolf, I'm using your post as a jumping off point, I don't recall if you are one of the offenders referenced below.

I want a written apology from every poster, on paper, in blue ink, who said I was crazy that this was an option for about 2 months in the middle of the season, and sited Keim and a few other beat reporters that kept saying Payne was in a contract year.

And I kept saying, he is NOT in a contract year, and I got all the "but he really is because they wouldn't keep him at his cap number" and I said, "they are going to have too many holes to fill and they don't need another one, and he's essentially the same cost next year as this year. So they might just keep him so they can focus elsewhere." No, they said, that can't happen. Well, it seems to be happening. (Whether I think this is a good idea or a bad idea is completely irrelevant to the point of this post.)

This argument was hashed out over and over.

The team is now least acknowledging that this is where things are headed. And most likely, this is where they will land up, unless Payne holds out or demands a trade. Which me might. But I don't think he's going to get the type of money elsewhere he's going to get this year from the team.

So. I win. Everybody who told me I was a dumbass moron for saying the team will consider keeping Payne and making him play it out owes me an apology, damnit.

So there.

(PS: in case you can't tell, this is some "scheduled fun" and nobody really owes me an apology, and I am wrong more than right. But I happen to be right about this, which might be luck.)

 

[prodigy]

Yeah. I felt he was supposed to be this year’s Noah Brown (guy available at just the right time for a role we needed) but we fumbled it.

To be fair I think he really wanted to be in SF and used us as leverage, if anything. And to be even fairer he was right, they had a much better season and he had already been there before.

I wanted Bourne at the time but, in retrospect, after seeing what happened with Jayden and the defense...it was a good thing we didn't get Bourne.

 

[RedWolf]

Voice_of_Reason

Feel better now? All good in your mind and heart?

If so? Great! Now carry on trooper

 

[Conn]

It always kills me when I see fans post this. And I'm not picking on you.

But what was one of the biggest criticisms of Snyder for his entire tenure, even if it wasn't true for 15 years? He spends too much in FA and doesn't build through the draft. Absent the fact he turned into a miser when he hired Bruce in 2010 and didn't spend on anything ever for the next 12 years, fans were furious about the free agent spending sprees, which happened basically twice, in 2000 and 2006.

And that became tied to Snyder and fans hated it, and media wrote about it, and it was a story.

However, every year when FA rolls around, it's "Why didn't we sign every top prospect to a deal?"

Again, not picking on you, it happens with just about every poster or fan of the team. I just find it humorous.

I really just think you’re conflating two different groups of people with different ideas and saying that “fans” think both things, and then chuckling to yourself about it as if you’re above it all, wryly shaking your head at the dummies around you.

I’m exaggerating for humor but I don’t think it’s a really fair take.

Like you said, anyone paying attention actually knows that Snyder/Bruce got super cheap over the years and we weren’t actually FA “offseason winners” for over a decade. So there’s a group of reactionary/less-informed fans who never let go of that Snyder stereotype, sure.

That doesn’t mean it’s the same group of people upset that under new ownership, we’ve kept our cap dollars in our pockets while the roster flounders.

Most here want to build primarily through the draft long term I think (and probably would prefer to get to the point where we’re playing the comp pick game consistently like the Ravens do).

But that requires hitting on draft picks. AP didn’t do that at a high enough clip in offseason #1 when he was overloaded with draft resources. Then he drafted better in offseason #2, but made some trades and we’re shorter in draft resources in offseason #3. So some people think to make up for that, some spending is in order, or it’s going to be difficult for the staff to compete and keep their jobs.

Doesn’t mean those are the same people who used to scold about Snyder “spending”. Doesn’t mean it’s a group of people lacking context.

It’s uncharitable for you to argue that it is, imo. If you squint and look at the strained connections you’re making, you’re actually the one drawing upon the Snyder-era feelings and projecting them onto how fans feel about this current FO, as if they have to be related or as if it’s the same people voicing contradictory opinions.

 

[KDawg]

It always kills me when I see fans post this. And I'm not picking on you.

But what was one of the biggest criticisms of Snyder for his entire tenure, even if it wasn't true for 15 years? He spends too much in FA and doesn't build through the draft. Absent the fact he turned into a miser when he hired Bruce in 2010 and didn't spend on anything ever for the next 12 years, fans were furious about the free agent spending sprees, which happened basically twice, in 2000 and 2006.

And that became tied to Snyder and fans hated it, and media wrote about it, and it was a story.

However, every year when FA rolls around, it's "Why didn't we sign every top prospect to a deal?"

Again, not picking on you, it happens with just about every poster or fan of the team. I just find it humorous.

I think you totally misread his point.

We have a ton of needs, we need to spend money to fill them.