The 49ers’ 2024 NFL draft didn’t feature any moves that will dramatically overhaul the roster this season. Trade talk about wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel quieted as the selection process moved into Day 2, and it became clear throughout the three-day event that San Francisco is gearing up for upcoming changes to its roster.
Wide receiver is the most obvious spot that could look very different next season. That became clear when the 49ers selected WR Ricky Pearsall at No. 31 overall. Future changes in the WR corps were further confirmed in Round 4 when the 49ers took Arizona WR Jacob Cowing No. 135 overall.
Both players figure to make the roster this season which could lead to some changes in the back end of the depth chart, but next year is when things could change more dramatically with Deebo Samuel potentially gone and Jauan Jennings potentially entering free agency.
The selection of Wake Forest safety Malik Mustapha at No. 124 overall came with a similar hint that changes are coming.
Mustapha is a high-level prospect who figures to earn a starting job in the NFL. The 49ers have Talanoa Hufanga and Ji’Ayir Brown slated to start at the two safety spots this season, but Hufanga is an unrestricted free agent next year and the Mustapha pick puts the writing on the wall for what’s ahead for him next offseason.
Assuming Hufanga fully recovers from his torn ACL and continues playing like one of the top safeties in the league, he’ll be able to get a contract in free agency that soars well north of what San Francisco will be able to afford.
Extensions will also be required to keep players like cornerbacks Charvarius Ward and Deommodore Lenoir and left guard Aaron Banks. It’s easy to draw a line between the chances those players are priced out of the 49ers’ range and the Day 2 selections of CB Renardo Green and OL Dominick Puni.
Even the trade up for running back Isaac Guerendo is a signal that time could in the Bay Area could be running out for RBs Elijah Mitchell and Jordan Mason – both expected to hit free agency in the offseason.
This isn’t because the 49ers suddenly became cheap. They just have to start sacrificing some areas of the roster with a sizable pay day coming for quarterback Brock Purdy. Once Purdy becomes more expensive the 49ers will have to alter the way their roster is constructed. This is the reality of team-building in a hard-capped league.
That means letting some good players out the door, and the 49ers worked through this draft as though they’re gearing up to replace some of those good players who’ll be casualties of a roster that’s moving toward a timeline that requires a younger roster.
In 2024 the 49ers will aim to get back to the Super Bowl with most of the same core that’s been around since their first Super Bowl run with Kyle Shanahan in 2019. Next year it’ll start looking different though, and a handful of players taken in this year’s draft will be key in ushering in that new era of football in San Francisco.
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