Here’s what the 49ers may have to pay restricted free agent receiver Jauan Jennings.
The NFL confirmed on Friday the official salary cap number for the 2024 season, as well as the dollar amounts for the various restricted free agent tenders.
Restricted free agency applies to players who have only played three seasons before hitting the free agent market. This offseason, only one 49ers player matches that description: wide receiverNFLNFL.
In restricted free agency, teams can place a limited number of RFA tenders on a player before allowing him to test the free agent waters. These tenders are fully guaranteed one-year contracts. Here’s a breakdown of each of the alternatives San Francisco can explore with Jennings, along with their respective costs:
This tender simply gives the player’s team the right to match any offer sheet they get in free agency
Jennings was not drafted, thus the 49ers will not use this one. It means that the team that signs the player to an offer sheet must provide draft compensation appropriate for the round in which the player was taken.
If the 49ers tender Jennings, this is likely where they will land. While a second-round tender is more expensive than a ROFR, the team that contracts Jennings must compensate the 49ers with a second-round choice if San Francisco does not match the offer sheet.
It’s similar to a second-round tender, but more expensive for the player’s original team and includes a first-round choice as compensation.
This is another possible destination for the 49ers’ 2020 seventh-round draft pick. Jennings is an effective receiver and run blocker. It wouldn’t be surprising if San Francisco wanted to extend him for a few years rather than paying him on a one-year RFA tender and risk losing him in unrestricted free agency next summer. With the rising salary limit, they may find room to extend him without placing themselves in a cap bind.
With the publication of the 2024 salary ceiling, which has increased to $255.4 million, the NFL has also provided teams with franchise and transition tag amounts this offseason.
The franchise tag window opened earlier this week, and teams will have until 4 p.m. ET on March 5 to designate a player.
The franchise tag tenders are as follows: quarterback ($38.301 million), running back ($11.951 million), receiver ($21.816 million), tight end ($12.693 million), offensive lineman ($20.985 million), defensive end ($21.324 million), defensive tackle ($22.102 million), linebacker ($24.007 million), cornerback ($19.802 million), safety ($17.123 million), and kicker/punter ($5.984 million).
The transition tag tenders are: quarterback ($34.367 million), running back ($9.765 million), receiver ($19.766 million), tight end ($10.878 million), offensive lineman ($19.040), and defensive end.
