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00:00We're excited to bring on our friend David Lombardi, River Islands, guest line, SF standard, all over the Niners.
00:07David, good afternoon and thank you. What's going on, man?
00:11Not much. Taking a little bit of a break from the free agency stuff.
00:14Hasn't been really busy for the 49ers today, but they just made a signing.
00:18They re-signed Garrett Wallow, their linebacker. They found him late in the season.
00:23So, yeah, he played well for them. That was a nice little pickup.
00:25Special teams guy and then obviously linebacker depth.
00:29But, you know, I'm just waiting for more clues as to what the 49ers are going to do defensively with
00:35Raheem Morris and Matt Eberflus now.
00:37And we just haven't gotten any clues yet, right?
00:38I want to see some front seven signings outside of guys they've already had just so I know what direction
00:44they're going in.
00:45But yesterday was fun covering the Mike Evans signing and we'll see what happens next.
00:50No doubt about it. That's an interesting point that they haven't done anything on the defensive side yet.
00:55But obviously we are focused on offense, not just Mike Evans, but everybody wants to know what's going to happen
01:02with Trent Williams.
01:03How do you see this playing out over the next 10 days?
01:09Well, on March 20th, he's due $10 million with an option bonus.
01:15And I think that the 49ers would really like to have this resolved before they pay him any money.
01:22Theoretically, they could pay him $10 million as a placeholder and continue with contract discussions.
01:29Although I believe you lose some leverage at that point if you're the 49ers because you have already committed $10
01:35million, which is quite a bit of money to Trent Williams.
01:38So I see that as something that was built into this contract back in 2024 as a tool to make
01:46sure that a resolution is found much more quickly than it was in 2024.
01:52The 49ers, and they do this in similar situations, although this one is different than others because Trent Williams is
02:02a Hall of Fame caliber player and he's older.
02:04He's going to be 38, but obviously they're not seeing eye to eye on the money.
02:08So the 49ers have gone ahead and said, you know, find a place that will pay you what you want
02:15and is also willing to send us some valuable draft capital in return.
02:20It's one of those things that, you know, the 49ers can say that's not likely to happen.
02:24So I think that ultimately because he's under contract with the 49ers because they need him to be the best
02:31team possible in 2026, they thread the needle and they find a price as opposed to the 49ers trading him
02:39away without really a backup plan.
02:42The only one I could possibly see is if they sign somebody like Rasheed Walker, the Packers tackle.
02:47But even then you get worse next year and the 49ers aren't in the business of getting worse next year.
02:53That's why they signed Mike Evans to what looks like a short term commitment.
02:57I actually think it could pair really well to have Trent Williams and Mike Evans on matching deals, right?
03:03Matching three year deals, maybe to end both of their Hall of Fame careers and they could play for a
03:08Super Bowl together on the 49ers.
03:10That sounds great to me, David.
03:12I like the way that you're laying that one out there.
03:14And you talked about it being unlikely to happen.
03:17Is it more unlikely because the Niners really, really need him or that teams out there won't be able to
03:22match the Niners price, which is probably going to be pretty high?
03:26Well, those two go together, right?
03:28Because they really need him, they're going to make the price really high.
03:32But, you know, if somebody is willing to send them a first round pick and pay Trent what he wants,
03:38then all of a sudden you're talking.
03:39And then the 49ers can say, well, OK, yeah, we'll sign Rasheed Walker right now and we can make our
03:43team better with a first round pick.
03:45And holistically, the team can theoretically get better that way, right?
03:49But it's going to be really hard if you're just looking at the left tackle position in a vacuum to
03:54envision the 49ers better at that spot without Trent Williams on the team in 2026.
04:01So you would have to find a way to get better overall, and that's the really, really tough needle to
04:07thread.
04:08That's why the simplest solution is typically the one that happens.
04:12And the simplest solution would be them working out a contract to end his career with the 49ers.
04:17David, when is the right time for the 49ers to at least start a succession plan at left tackle?
04:28Right now, but succession plans are easier to talk about than to actually execute because it's a premium position, right?
04:35So, you know, even if they had kept Jalen Moore, right, that would have cost a lot of money.
04:41Kansas City was willing to pay him $15 million a year, so it would be unfeasible to keep him as
04:46a backup tackle.
04:47I think even if they had kept him, it wouldn't really give the 49ers that much leverage in this situation
04:52because Trent Williams is Trent Williams.
04:54He's one of the best in the game, but you would still be looking at an alternative that would be
04:58worse than Trent Williams.
05:01So, I mean, yeah, you can draft somebody, but, you know, they're not picking in the top 10.
05:07So whoever you draft would be a lottery pick that you would have to develop.
05:11Maybe he would develop.
05:12He probably wouldn't develop into a good enough starting NFL tackle.
05:15It typically takes a very, very high pick for a player to have the physical measurements necessary to succeed as
05:24an NFL offensive tackle.
05:25There's a reason there's a shortage of these guys.
05:27There's a reason why they command such high salaries.
05:31I think the team that has best found a way to develop these tackles are the Green Bay Packers.
05:37That's why they have these linemen in excess, like Rasheed Walker.
05:41They're not re-signing him.
05:43But it's really, really rare to see guys like this hit in the free agent market.
05:46So the last time that the 49ers had to make a change of tackle was because Joe Staley was retiring,
05:51and they got lucky enough to be able to trade for Trent Williams.
05:54That was back in 2020.
05:56So, you know, everybody talks about succession plans and developing tackles.
06:02It's just really, really, really hard to do and hard to thread that needle.
06:06So that's why the 49ers have just been riding this Trent Williams train as long as they can.
06:11I was looking at the list, David, and the majority of the top tackles were drafted by the team that
06:16they're still on,
06:17and most of them in the top 13 in their individual drafts.
06:20So as you look at the succession plan, if you're the 49ers, if you continue to be good,
06:27what other chance do you have to actually go out there and get a guy?
06:31Yeah, that's the thing.
06:32Most of these tackles are drafted by teams after the team performed poorly, right?
06:36So you look back, and the 49ers, when they could have gotten Tristan worse, right?
06:42That was after the 2020 season.
06:46Oh, no, no, it was after 2019 because they traded DeForest Buckner.
06:51That was a spot where they maybe should have gotten a tackle,
06:54but they still would have had to deal with the issue of paying him by this point, right,
06:58because his rookie contract would have been expired.
07:01So the 49ers have been a losing team twice since the start of the 2019 season,
07:09once in 2020 and once in 2024, and those were the two times when they had the option to draft
07:19a little bit higher,
07:19but obviously there wasn't a match there at that time.
07:22And so it is a tricky needle to thread, but it's just one of those premium positions in the NFL.
07:27David Lombardi, SF Standard, with us here, Weatherton Dibs, 95-7 the game.
07:31Diana Rossini had a tweet earlier that people have called on Mac Jones,
07:35but that they're stating the asking price from the Niners is astronomical.
07:39I saw you kind of quote, tweet, and say, as it should be.
07:43So what do we think happens there?
07:45Are we certain at this point that Mac is staying?
07:50Well, I think the 49ers' actions will probably be congruent here.
07:54And by that, I mean, we'll look to see what they've done so far.
07:56They have signed Mike Evans.
07:57It's going to be 33 to a short-term deal.
08:00That's a guy that wants to win a championship now.
08:02They're likely going to re-sign Trent Williams.
08:05He's going to be 38 to a short-term deal.
08:07That's the guy who wants to win a championship now.
08:09If you want to think about a team that's as ready-made as possible to win a championship now,
08:14depth at the quarterback position is extremely important.
08:17They went 5-3 last year in games without Brock Purdy.
08:20And over 50% of quarterbacks on a year-in, year-out basis in the NFL, QB1s get hurt.
08:26And the QB2 needs to play some amount of games.
08:30And that's across the league.
08:31That is not just the 49ers' number.
08:33That's across the league.
08:35So the 49ers had the best quarterback room in the NFL last year.
08:38Purdy was number two in QBR, and Mac Jones was number nine.
08:43And to post a top-10 QBR score is hard in the NFL.
08:47That's the one stat that tries to isolate the QB play as much as possible from everything else.
08:54And to do what Mac Jones did without weapons for a lot of his games,
08:59I mean, the 49ers were operating with a skeleton crew.
09:01It's damn impressive.
09:02And, you know, I think the 49ers should hold out for an extremely high pick
09:08because they have a need, given how they're playing these other situations
09:12with Mike Evans and probably Trent Williams.
09:14They have a need to make sure that this team is as strong as possible depth-wise
09:19at the most important position in 2026.
09:22So, you know, it's the same thing as Trent Williams.
09:24If you're going to trade Trent away, you've got to make sure that the compensation
09:29allows you to get holistically better this season.
09:32If you're going to trade Mac away because he plays at such an important position
09:35and was so good for you last year, you've got to make sure that the return
09:39makes you holistically better this year.
09:41And I think that's the way that the 49ers are thinking about it.
09:43And he played so well that the price is high and should be high.
09:46I'm also wondering, David, about the George Kittle part of this
09:50because he is so important to this offense, yet with the Achilles suffered in January,
09:54he may not be back until November, and he probably won't be George Kittle all year.
09:59So are they going to be aggressive here in this marketplace to go out and find a tight end?
10:06Yeah, you know, that's what I'm not sure about on both fronts.
10:08I'm not sure what the recovery timeline is going to be
10:10because they were really optimistic after the surgery.
10:13Apparently, the tear was higher, so there was better blood flow to that area,
10:18which means that there could be a quicker recovery.
10:21George is not publicly saying when he wants to be back,
10:25but I'm sure that he's circling week one, even if it's medically improbable.
10:32But we'll see when he's back.
10:34The 49ers obviously have more information on that front.
10:39You know, I think David Njoku is still out there.
10:43I'm not sure how much money he would command if the 49ers feel they need to go veteran tight end.
10:48They did go bigger receiver.
10:50They've got a big X now in Mike Evans,
10:53and I still think that there's another receiver move to be made out there.
10:57Say Juwan Jennings comes back, all of a sudden, does that change your need for a tight end
11:02if they got two really big receivers, including Jennings in the number three?
11:05I'm just spitballing right now as to what the 49ers can do
11:08because there has been this positionless skill position mentality
11:12that Kyle Shanahan has been able to embed into the offense.
11:15And, of course, there's the NFL draft as well.
11:17But the way I looked at it, you know,
11:19I didn't think that Luke Farrell was very good last year for the 49ers.
11:23I thought that he was a disappointment blocking-wise,
11:25and that's what San Francisco needed.
11:27I thought they might be on the market for a blocking tight end,
11:31and then Charlie Kolar was Brock Purdy's teammate from Iowa State
11:34and he was the best blocking tight end in this free agent class.
11:38It just so happened that Charlie Kolar went to Jim Harbaugh
11:41and Mike McDaniel, of all people, the Chargers.
11:44He signed for like $24 million, $8 million a year,
11:47so probably a little bit out of the price range,
11:49but I thought the 49ers might go in that direction.
11:51They didn't do it, so we just got to wait and see what they do.
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12:05David, I liked your Kenneth Gainwell idea.
12:08I've been trumpeting for weeks.
12:10The 49ers have got to get someone else
12:13to really help share that backfield with Christian.
12:16The load is just too great as he approaches 30 here,
12:19but Gainwell goes.
12:21I'm sure there's other names still out there,
12:23but what are you thinking that they're thinking about running back?
12:28They could, theoretically, really like Jordan James,
12:31so that would be a best-case scenario.
12:34You don't have to sign anybody.
12:35Jordan James has impressed you a ton behind the scenes.
12:38He's running good routes.
12:39He's got good rapport practice with the QBs,
12:42and he's just your running back, too,
12:43and he starts to work into the rotation this next year.
12:46That's a possibility.
12:47I don't know if that's true,
12:49but that's something that we do need to entertain.
12:51That's why you draft guys,
12:53because you hope that they can emerge as reliable depth first
12:56and then potentially into starters down the road,
12:58especially if they're fifth-round picks like Jordan James.
13:01So that could be a thing.
13:03Isaac Rendo is still on this football team,
13:05and I know that they're interested in bringing
13:07Brian Robinson Jr. back at the right price,
13:10and he ran the ball well for the 49ers this past year.
13:14My concern there is that he was not used in the pass game
13:18for whatever reason,
13:20and that usually means that the rapport with the quarterbacks
13:23and just the general feel for the receiving game isn't there.
13:28The bottom three running backs in the league last year
13:31in terms of yards per route run,
13:33so that means how well they were integrated into the passing game,
13:36were Brian Robinson,
13:38and then two of the three were Brian Robinson and Jordan Mason,
13:41and the 49ers traded Jordan Mason.
13:44In large part because he wasn't allowing them
13:46to give Christian McCaffrey the breathers that they needed
13:49because he wasn't the threat they needed in the passing game.
13:52So I agree with you.
13:54I think that they need to make sure that that running back, too,
13:57allows them to give Christian McCaffrey some breathers
14:00and maintains a credible receiving threat,
14:02and I don't know if Jordan James is that guy
14:05or if they're going to have to go outside the building.
14:07I know that Kenneth Gainwell would have fit well,
14:08but he signed for, what, $7 million annually with Tampa Bay.
14:11Yeah, that's a little too rich for their blood.
14:13I'm just wondering about Isaac Garendo
14:15because he played zero snaps last year after a rookie year
14:18where he actually got at least some touches.
14:21Have they completely soured on him outside of him as a special teamer?
14:26Well, Isaac is fairly fresh to the running back position.
14:30Not a lot of tread on the tires at running back in college even,
14:34and he actually converted early on at Wisconsin
14:37from receiver to running back.
14:40So I think there are some questions regarding,
14:42does he have the natural instincts, the vision to play running back
14:46at the NFL level, and then the ball security on top of that.
14:48I think we've already seen some of those ball security issues play out
14:52on the actual field, whether it be special teams during a game
14:55or on the practice field.
14:57So I think those are the concerns there.
14:59You know, in theory, Isaac Garendo is a great idea.
15:04I mean, the guy runs a 4'3", he's 220 pounds.
15:08Everything physically about him screams that this could be
15:11an awesome offensive weapon.
15:13But it's not just about the athletic scores.
15:16It's about being a football player.
15:17And if this guy's a tweener that has never really, you know,
15:21figured out how to play the nuances of the receiver position
15:25or the nuances of the running back position at a high enough level,
15:28then it's just not going to work in the NFL.
15:30So I think there still is some hope.
15:31We'll see how he does this offseason.
15:34But, you know, the reasons that I just listed are why he was buried
15:37on the depth chart last year.
15:39And I get it.
15:40Whenever fans see those testing scores, which were awesome for Isaac Garendo,
15:44there's a lot of hope.
15:45But, you know, who didn't have great testing scores
15:47and is the greatest football player of all time is Jerry Rice.
15:50So it's obviously about a lot more than if the guy can run fast
15:55and is big and muscular.
15:56David, is there any chance for Trey Hendrickson and the Niners to get together
16:01or is that just too rich?
16:03You know, I heard he wants more than $30,000 and nobody wants to pay more than $30,000.
16:10So we'll see how much the price goes down.
16:11Here's the hope there for the 49ers.
16:14And maybe this ends up with somebody that's going to obviously be at a lower price
16:18like Joey Bosa.
16:19They very clearly have had money earmarked for defensive tackle.
16:24So somewhere on the defensive line because they were in the sweepstakes
16:27for John Franklin Myers.
16:28They decided not to outbid the Titans.
16:31You could say that was a good decision or a bad decision.
16:33It would have cost as much as Javon Hargrave.
16:35So that experience might have colored the 49ers' decision here.
16:41And they decided to let Robert Sala and the Titans have John Franklin Myers.
16:45So that money, though, they were already ready to spend at least, you know,
16:4980% to 90% of that $21 million per year.
16:52So I wonder now, do they reallocate that to another defensive tackle?
16:57Because I don't see a defensive tackle worth a whole lot of money anymore.
17:00Because David Onyemata got signed to the New York Jets,
17:03and it was a really sparse class.
17:05So do they then pivot to defensive end where Trey Hendrickson wants more than that?
17:09He wants more than $30 million a year.
17:11Or, you know, I think Joey Bosa, who played for 13 last year.
17:14And the 49ers offered Joey 10 last year.
17:16So the 49ers were interested in bringing Joey in at 10.
17:21And that was coming off of some injury-riddled seasons.
17:24He delivered a healthy season for Buffalo.
17:26So maybe they're willing to give him a little bit more this offseason.
17:30Because he played a solid season for Buffalo.
17:32They obviously need more juice on the defensive line.
17:35And I'm curious to see how they treat Bryce Huff moving forward.
17:39Because I don't know if he's going to be a fit with what Raheem Morris wants to do or not.
17:43Again, there's so many questions and so little clues at this point
17:46about the direction of the 49ers defense.
17:49Fascinating to see what Raheem Morris and company will do.
17:51You mentioned Jawan Jennings before.
17:53And I had all but basically written him off as out of town.
17:56Is there any chance if his price drops to a spot,
18:00is there acrimony there?
18:02Or could he possibly come back for the right number?
18:04No, I don't think there's acrimony.
18:07I know that Jawan wanted over $20 million last year.
18:10And the 49ers said no.
18:11I mean, so they sweetened his contract a little bit.
18:15But they obviously had the leverage there.
18:18They weren't going to go down the Ayuk path again.
18:23Ayuk played X.
18:24And I know they needed Jawan at the X this past year.
18:29Ultimately, because of all the injuries at receiver
18:31and because Ayuk didn't come back.
18:33But at the time, they didn't know that.
18:35And obviously, Jawan is not their ideal long-term ex.
18:39They'd rather have him as a third receiver.
18:41If he drops enough in price to be a legitimate, you know,
18:47cost-efficient option of the third receiver,
18:49maybe like obviously a very expensive third receiver,
18:51of course, the 49ers would consider it.
18:54But it's unlikely that's going to happen.
18:56However, the receiver market has been seeing a depression.
18:59For example, I think we saw Romeo Dobbs sign for $17.5 million today.
19:04Guys, do you remember five years ago, Christian Kirk signed for $17 million a year?
19:09Oh, yes.
19:09Romeo Dobbs can play X.
19:11Like, Romeo Dobbs is good.
19:12He's way more versatile than Christian Kirk ever was.
19:15So, anyway, the last five years had seen a crazy inflation in receiver prices.
19:20And we might finally be seeing a correction.
19:23I mean, the 49ers might have benefited from that.
19:24They got Mike Evans at less than $15 million a year on the base of that deal.
19:29So, we'll see what the market for Juwan ends up being.
19:33David, this is great stuff.
19:35And especially on a day with a lot of news coming down,
19:39really, really appreciate your time, man.
19:41Thank you so much.
19:42Yeah, thanks, guys.
19:43Okay.
19:44David Lombardi, SF Standard, with the latest.
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