San Francisco 49ers 2022 free agency outlook

The San Francisco 49ers were one game away from going to Super Bowl 56 but fell just short. Even so, with the roster that they put forth, their offense lacked depth and their defense lacked difference makers in the secondary. They finished the regular season with a 10-7 record and were able to unlock the value of wide receiver Deebo Samuel as the swiss army knife in their offense.

Trey Lance is their quarterback of the future, but Jimmy Garoppolo is under center for one more year with the team. If they make a trade sending him out, they could boost their available cap space to try and shore up their depth and bring in some more complementary pieces to the stars they already have.

Last season’s salary cap number dropped to $182.5 million as the league dealt with the pandemic, but the 2022 cap rebound back up to $208 million according to Over The Cap. That increase should loosen a few team pocketbooks this offseason.

Franchise/Transition Tag possibilities

The 49ers last used their franchise tag on kicker Robbie Gould in 2019, but their last use before that was back in 2012. With the free agents that they have, they would be overpaying their players at most of the positions from what we see the projected franchise tag amount being. From their free agents, I don’t see a lot of options that make sense for the tag.

Salary cap

Estimated 2022 cap space: ($2.95 million)

Notable unrestricted free agents