The 49ers didn’t make many splashy moves this offseason.
Instead, they mostly let go of big-name players such as Deebo Samuel and Dre Greenlaw so they could give big money to Brock Purdy, George Kittle and Fred Warner. So, the core of the team is essentially intact, while the rest of it is mostly young and/or brand new.
The biggest signing the 49ers made this offseason was backup tight end Luke Farrell. They gave him a three-year deal. He never has caught a touchdown pass in his career.
The biggest trade the 49ers made was when they acquired defensive end Bryce Huff from the Eagles. He might make a positive impact for the 49ers, considering he had 10 sacks in 2023, but that was his only productive season, and he was a miserable failure for the Eagles, which is why they’re paying more than half of his salary this year.
That’s why the 49ers’ best move of the offseason by far was hiring Robert Saleh as their defensive coordinator. Saleh is one of the best defensive coordinators in the NFL — the 49ers should know, he was their defensive coordinator from 2017 to 2020.
Since then, Saleh has been the head coach of the New York Jets where he built another dominant defense. Unfortunately for Saleh, he couldn’t find a good quarterback and the Jets are a terrible franchise, so he got fired.
Now, he’s an even better coach than when he left the 49ers. He has grown, evolved and matured. He’s like a professor, not an undergraduate.
So even if the 49ers start five rookies on defense, you figure they’ll give up fewer points this year than they did last year simply because Saleh is way beyond former defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen, who isn’t even a defensive coordinator anymore — the Cowboys recently hired him to be their special teams coordinator.
What an upgrade for the 49ers.
