The San Francisco 49ers are set to look very different in 2025 after a significant offseason roster shakeup. Several fan favorites will be playing elsewhere next season, including Dre Greenlaw, Talanoa Hufanga, Kyle Juszczyk, and Deebo Samuel. What's more concerning to fans is that the 49ers haven't made any significant moves in free agency—at least none that seem to offset those high-profile losses.
We saw this coming. At the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, general manager John Lynch made it clear that the team could no longer afford to hand out big contracts, especially with quarterback Brock Purdy on track to land one of the NFL's largest deals.
"I think since Kyle and I have been here, we've been certainly a top five, I believe, number two, cash spending team in the four years," Lynch said. "Going into the fourth year, I think we're the fourth-highest cash-spending team, so at some point, you have to reset a little bit or at least recalibrate. You can't just keep pressing the pedal, and I think there's some good that could come out."
The 49ers even missed out on veteran pass rusher Joey Bosa, who signed a one-year, $12.6 million deal with the Buffalo Bills—likely more than San Francisco was willing to offer.
Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer joined The Rich Eisen Show on Tuesday and offered some reassurance to 49ers fans who might be panicking as they keep an eye on our 2025 free agency tracker.
Breer pointed out that while the 49ers have had success finding talent through the draft, especially outside the first round, replicating that year after year is challenging. However, he emphasized that Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan have made plenty of smart decisions during their tenure.
Considering how much the 49ers have spent in recent years, an offseason reset was inevitable.
"But this was the logical time to do it," Breer said. "And if you want real encouragement, here it is for you. The Buffalo Bills did this exact same thing last year. And the Bills, I think it was something like $65 million in dead cap they took on. They got rid of a ton of guys."
Many questioned how the Bills would manage after their own roster overhaul.
"And you know what ended up happening? A great program carried them through," Breer commented. "The Rams, two years ago, same thing. The Rams, two years ago, they ate all of this dead money. They traded away [CB] Jalen Ramsey. What are the Rams going to do? Well, it was a front office, a coaching staff that made a lot of good decisions over the years, continuing to make good decisions, filling out the roster.
"And now, what do you see? You see the Rams and Bills in a good position going forward with clean cap and a full complement of draft picks. I think that's sort of where the Niners are.
"Now, can they pull it off the same way the Bills and Rams did? Maybe, maybe not. But I don't think there's any question they've got the right people in charge to pull it off."