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49ers Rumors: Buzz on Raheem Mostert Contract, Jamal Adams Trade, George Kittle
July 13, 2020
The San Francisco 49ers sit in a position of luxury heading into the 2020 season after competing for a Super Bowl last year.
Granted, standing as a Super Bowl loser comes with its challenges. The 49ers have to improve and match expectations after rebounding from a 4-12 season to 13 wins and Lombardi Trophy contention.
The front office in San Francisco has geared the entire offseason toward this pursuit, making two-first round selections and making a big call to trade DeForest Buckner to the Indianapolis Colts, to name a few.
Based on the rumor mill, the 49ers are not done yet given some trade rumblings and extension candidates with training camp looming. Here's the latest.
While the spotlight centered on names like George Kittle, running back Raheem Mostert stepped to center stage recently with a trade request, according to his agent Brett Tessler.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network followed up with some context:
Ian Rapoport @RapSheetSpoke with @TesslerSports about RB Raheem Mostert and his trade demand from #49ers. His request was simply to bring Mostert in line with the highest paid RBs on the team. Tevin Coleman makes $4.55M in 2020 and that’s where Mostert wants to be. He has two years left on his deal.
The former undrafted free agent bounced around the league for a few seasons before becoming one of the best stories of the 2019 season. He wound up leading the 49ers in rushing, with 772 yards and eight scores on a 5.6 yards-per-carry average. Far from done, he then added 336 yards and five scores on a 6.3 average over three postseason games, Super Bowl included.
Mostert would appear to have plenty of leverage for such a contractual request. Matt Breida is now a member of the Miami Dolphins, and he grossly outperformed his contact a season ago on a deal that will currently only register as a roughly $3.1 million cap hit in 2020.
Running back valuations vary wildly by team, though, and the 49ers could just as easily scoff at the request, implying the system will squeak similar production out of other names on the depth chart. Considering the 49ers only have roughly $11.9 million in cap space right now and rumblings suggest other big moves, Mostert's situation is one of the most interesting to watch right now.
Jamal Adams
The Jamal Adams trade saga isn't going to go away until a move actually happens. And as the past 12 months or so has shown, the 49ers will continually be brought up as a point of speculation with the biggest names.
It's no surprise, then, that the 49ers popped up as one of the seven teams the star New York Jets safety would welcome a trade to, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Sports Illustrated's Corbin Smith recently reported the 49ers have had "preliminary discussions" on Adams:
Smith's colleague Rob Rang reported the Seattle Seahawks have enquired about Adams, too.
It's not hard to see why. Adams is one of the game's best outright players, hence the 87.9 grade at Pro Football Focus last year. And while he's commonly hailed as a stellar run defender, it's hard to ignore the fact Adams only allowed a 53.9 completion percentage over his last two campaigns, according to Pro Football Reference.
Besides adding a 24-year-old superstar defender right in his prime, the context here is the 49ers would also be able to swipe a player a rival would seemingly like to acquire. But the cost of such a move would be high, as after trading at least a first-round pick (and likely other assets), the 49ers would then have to navigate a tough cap situation to make Adams one of the league's highest-paid defenders.
It wouldn't be an easy feat for any team to pull off, let alone one with limited cap space, a loaded roster as it is and a pair of notable offensive weapons looking for extensions, too.
George Kittle
The question as to whether 49ers star tight end George Kittle will hold out seems to have an answer.
While Kittle is an extension candidate, he's already partaking in offseason workouts with teammates despite the NFLPA advising against workouts ahead of training camp.
He even told CBS Sports' Jordan Dajani these workouts will be instrumental for the team: "So, I think it was a good start, but we have a long way to go, and I think the foundation we have put in and that everyone has put in this offseason will definitely give us a step ahead on some teams."
Kittle also touched on the topic on Gatorade's "Beat the Heat" conference call (h/t Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area): "Being a captain, I want to be there for my team, and I need to show the right leadership skills."
The Athletic's Matt Barrows has already reported a Kittle extension could check in around $13 million per year, which makes sense for a key contributor who has consecutive 1,000-yard seasons and 10 total receiving touchdowns to his name over the last two years. He has a $2.2 million cap hit in 2020.
While Kittle enters the season on the final year of his deal, it seems the 49ers will avoid a holdout scenario with a key member of the team, affording them some flexibility to pursue varying luxurious roster-building options.
All cap information via Spotrac unless otherwise noted.