The San Francisco 49ers are one of the truly elite teams in the NFL. They have been as consistent as any team in the NFC over the last five seasons.
San Francisco has made four trips in five years to the NFC Championship Game. They won that game twice before losing to the Kansas City Chiefs each time in the Super Bowl.
Heading into the 2024 season, the San Francisco 49ers are once again well-positioned to contend. Veterans who remain free agents this deep into the offseason could consider latching on with them for a below-market price for the chance to chase a ring.
One of those players, in the opinion of Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report, is cornerback Stephon Gilmore. The San Francisco 49ers were listed as a potential suitor for the former Defensive Player of the Year by Knox.
“The San Francisco 49ers should also take a long look at Gilmore. While San Francisco’s defense was quite good last season—it finished third in points allowed—it had its issues against top passers like Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow,” Knox wrote.
With the NFL becoming more and more of a passing league each year, all contending teams should be lining up to sign Gilmore. He proved last season with the Dallas Cowboys he still has something left in the tank to offer.
He started all 17 games for the Cowboys, logging 94 percent of the defensive snaps. Gilmore wasn’t just eating up plays, he was playing at a high level; opponents had a passer rating of only 82.7 when targeting him.
“I’m still focused on playing, but it has to be the right opportunity,” Gilmore told NFL insider Josina Anderson in May. “I feel like it’s the age thing with some of these teams. If I was 28, I would already have been signed by now.”
The San Francisco 49ers did add some depth in their secondary in free agency. They signed veterans Rock Ya-Sin and Isaac Yiadom to play behind Charvarius Ward.
That is some solid depth that the San Francisco 49ers have to work with, as Deommodore Lenoir and Jason Verrett remain on the roster as well. But adding a veteran of Gilmore’s caliber is never a bad thing for a contender such as them.
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