Although 49ers left tackle Trent Williams said at the end of last season that he will be back this season, that doesn’t appear certain.
The 49ers and Williams have made no progress on a new contract, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.
Williams is heading into the final year of his current contract and has a $38.8 million cap number that the 49ers would like to reduce. If they can agree on a new deal that would lower that cap number this year while guaranteeing him some money in 2027, that could make sense for both sides.
But if the two sides can’t come to an agreement, it’s possible that the 49ers would cut Williams. The 37-year-old Williams is still playing well, but the 49ers may decide that their long-term interests are better served by moving on.
Whether it’s in San Francisco or elsewhere, Williams believes he has a few good years left in his career, and he’ll be a sought-after free agent if the 49ers move on.
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Kicker Jake Moody is set to hit the open market.
Via reporter Jordan Schultz, the Commanders will not place a restricted free agent tender on Moody, allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent next week.
Moody, a 49ers’ third-round pick in 2023, ended the 2025 season with Washington. Appearing in six games for the club, Moody connected on 10-of-11 field goals and 10-of-11 extra points.
San Francisco waived Moody after he missed a pair of field goals in Week 1. He kicked in two games for Chicago before making his way to Washington late in the year.
In his 40 career games, Moody has made 78.0 percent of his field goal attempts and 97.3 percent of his extra points.
The 49ers are keeping their veteran long snapper.
San Francisco announced on Tuesday that the club has re-signed Jon Weeks to a one-year deal.
Weeks was set to become an unrestricted free agent next week.
Weeks joined San Francisco last year after spending his first 15 seasons with Houston. He earned his second career Pro Bowl berth with the 49ers in 2025.
Weeks has not missed a game since entering the league in 2010 as an undrafted free agent, playing in 261 contests. Weeks turned 40 on Feb. 17.
The coming quarterback carousel may not include Mac Jones.
Per The Athletic, a market has not yet emerged for the backup to 49ers starter Brock Purdy.
It makes sense. With plenty of free-agent options currently available — and with more coming as cuts are made — quarterback-needy teams are far more likely to consider players who could be acquired without losing a draft pick.
The 49ers wisely signed Jones to a two-year deal last year, giving them full control over his rights for 2026. They say they don’t want to trade him, but that’s surely posturing. For the right price, they’d find another No. 2 for the coming season.
Jones is due to make only $3.25 million in 2026. If someone trades for him with the idea of making him the starter or a competitor for the job, he may want a raise. That adds another wrinkle to the situation.
For now, it makes sense for the teams that are looking for quarterbacks to look to the open market. Once the initial wave subsides, a team that has yet to satisfactorily address the position may decide to make a play for the 2021 first-round pick.
Some of the moves that will be made over the next week will be surprising. Some will not be.
In the “not surprising” category comes the news, via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com, that the Texans will release veteran safety Jimmie Ward.
Ward, 34, didn’t play in 2025, due to both placement on the Commissioner Exempt list and, after that, the Physically Unable to Perform list. He suffered a foot injury late in the 2024 season.
The move, per Schefter, creates $750,000 in net cap space.
Picked in the first round of the 2014 draft by the 49ers, Ward spent nine seasons in San Francisco. He signed with the Texans in 2023, when 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans became the head coach of the Texans.
Ward appeared in 10 regular-season games with 10 starts in 2023, and 10 regular-season games with 10 starts in 2024.
Teams making decisions about picking up the fifth-year options on the contracts of their 2023 first-round picks now know how much that will cost.
The NFL revealed the values on Friday afternoon. There are four levels of compensation at each position. Players who have made multiple Pro Bowls as an original selection are at the top followed by players with one Pro Bowl selection and players who have hit playing time milestones before reaching the lowest level.
Panthers quarterback Bryce Young and Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud were the first two picks of that draft and both of them reached the playing time level of compensation. That will leave them with fully guaranteed salaries of $25.904 million if the teams decide to exercise the options, but longer-term extensions are also a possibility now that they have finished their third seasons.
The full list of 2023 first-rounders — there were 31 that year because the Dolphins were stripped of their pick — and their fifth-year option salaries appears below:
1. Panthers QB Bryce Young — $25.904 million (playing time).
2. Texans QB C.J. Stroud — $25.904 million (playing time).
3. Texans DE Will Anderson — $21.512 (Pro Bowl).
4. Colts QB Anthony Richardson — $22.483 million (base).
5. Seahawks CB Devon Witherspoon — $21.161 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
6. Cardinals OT Paris Johnson — $19.072 million (playing time).
7. Raiders DE Tyree Wilson — $14.475 million (base).
8. Falcons RB Bijan Robinson — $11.323 million (Pro Bowl).
9. Eagles DT Jalen Carter — $27.127 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
10. Bears OT Darnell Wright — $19.072 million (playing time).
11. Titans OG Peter Skoronski — $19.072 million (playing time).
12. Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs — $14.293 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
13. Packers DE Lukas Van Ness — $14.475 million (base).
14. Steelers OT Broderick Jones — $19.072 million (playing time).
15. Jets DE Will McDonald — $14.475 million (base).
16. Rams CB Emmanuel Forbes — $12.633 million (base).
17. Patriots CB Christian Gonzalez — $18.119 million (Pro Bowl).
18. Lions LB Jack Campbell — $21.925 million (Pro Bowl).
19. Buccaneers DT Calijah Kancey — $15.451 (playing time).
20. Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba — $23.852 million (Pro Bowl).
21. Chargers WR Quentin Johnston — $18 million (playing time).
22. Ravens WR Zay Flowers — $27.298 million (multiple Pro Bowls).
23. Vikings WR Jordan Addison — $18 million (playing time).
24. Giants CB Deonte Banks — $12.633 million (base).
25. Bills TE Dalton Kincaid — $8.162 million (base).
26. Jets DT Mazi Smith — $13.391 million (base) Smith was traded to the Jets by the Cowboys.
27. Jaguars OT Anton Harrison — $19.072 million (playing time).
28. Bengals DE Myles Murphy — $14.475 million (base).
29. Saints DT Bryan Bresee — $13.391 million (base).
30. Eagles LB Nolan Smith — $13.752 million (base).
31. Chiefs Felix Anudike-Uzomah — $14.475 million (base).
The 49ers are set to play games in Melbourne and Mexico City during the 2026 season and that sets the NFC West club up for a lot of traveling over their 17-game schedule.
The total mileage for their road trips totals more than 38,000 miles and General Manager John Lynch told Jennifer Lee Chan of NBCSportsBayArea.com that the team is looking into anything they can do to alleviate the stresses that come with that much travel. Lynch also said that the team’s conversations with the league have them expecting some other scheduling considerations that mitigate all the time away from the Bay Area.
“We’ve talked with the league, and the league has assured us they’ll give us the grace in the back end,” Lynch said. “Things that we’re not going to go into, but in terms of scheduling, to help ease that burden. It’s part of another challenge. I think we will set a record for the amount of travel in a year, but we always travel a lot. It just got a little bit more because of the distance of Australia. Part of it is exciting. We’ll embrace it, make the most of it. We’ll be smart about the way we approach it.”
The 49ers may get some relief from their extended travels in the final weeks of the season, but they’ll have to handle the schedule well for those games to hold the kind of weight that the 49ers hope they will at this point in the calendar.
49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said last month that he would be “very surprised” if Mac Jones is not with the team for the 2026 season, but the 49ers aren’t going to be rejecting calls from other teams about the quarterback.
Jones showed he’s capable of being a starter while Brock Purdy was out of action with a toe injury in 2025 and that could make him a trade target for other teams who aren’t as well stocked at the position as the Niners. On Tuesday, General Manager John Lynch said that any of those teams will have to put together a compelling package in order for the 49ers to think about moving their backup.
“He’s really good for us and we value that,” Lynch said, via Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com. “And so somebody would have to come with something fairly strong for us to consider. And then I don’t know what we do. Obviously there’s always something that would make you [do it], but I think we’re a better team with him on it and we just like having him around.”
Jones said this month that he believes he’s “proven” his ability to be a starter, but he’ll need an opportunity as well and it’s not a sure thing that one of them will materialize this offseason.
One of the hot topics on Tuesday at the Scouting Combine was the future of Eagles receiver A.J. Brown. And while the Eagles are saying all the right things regarding Brown’s future in Philly, odds as to his next team have emerged.
At DraftKings, the current favorites are the Eagles, at -130.
Next on the list is the Patriots, at +275. The Chargers land at +750, with the Bills at +900.
A return to the Titans is a +1000 bet. The Raiders are +1400, with the 49ers, Dolphins, and Ravens at +1600.
Eagles G.M. Howie Roseman made it clear that they’ll listen to any team that makes any offers about Brown or any other player. The question is whether another team will make the Eagles an offer they won’t refuse.
Former Vikings General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has found a new job.
49ers General Manager John Lynch said at a Tuesday press conference that Adofo-Mensah is joining the team as a personnel executive. The Vikings fired Adofo-Mensah in January after four seasons with the team.
This is Adofo-Mensah’s second time working for the 49ers. He was their manager of football research and development from 2013-2016 and the director of football research and development from 2017-2019. Adofo-Mensah worked under Lynch in the latter position.
Adofo-Mensah spent two years as the Browns’ vice president of football operations before landing the GM job in Minnesota.
