SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The San Francisco 49ers are keeping the strongest part of their team together as they agreed to a five-year, $85 million contract with defensive lineman Arik Armstead, a source told ESPN.
The new contract comes after a breakthrough season for Armstead and ensures the Niners will bring their four starters on the defensive line back for another run at the Super Bowl in 2020.
Throughout the offseason, Niners coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch repeatedly made it clear that they wanted Armstead to remain with the only NFL team he’s ever known as he approached his first foray into free agency.
“Arik is an excellent player,” Lynch said in February. “He had an excellent year. I think everything is on the table. We want to find a way to keep him and make him a part of the 49ers for a long time.”
That’s precisely what the 49ers were able to do. In the process, they were able to avoid having to use the franchise tag, an option the team considered so as to prevent Armstead from leaving without some sort of compensation coming back.
The franchise tag would have provided Armstead a one-year tender offer that would have paid him nearly $18 million for the season. It also meant the Niners would have had until July 15 to get a deal done with Armstead or, perhaps, trade him.
In the days following the Super Bowl LIV loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, Armstead indicated that he’d be OK with playing under the tag if it happened.
“I would love being here,” Armstead said then. “Trying to go back to the Super Bowl, so however that is seen or has to get done, it’s not really my decision what they want to do with me.”
Instead, the two sides were able to work out a deal that works and keeps Armstead in the only NFL home he’s ever known. The Sacramento native told ESPN in December that he “can’t even imagine” playing somewhere else.
With his hometown about two hours away, Armstead’s circle of family and friends is nearby, he’s played all five of his NFL seasons with the Niners and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner is one of his closest friends, dating to their time playing collegiately at Oregon.
Armstead enjoyed a breakout season in 2019, finishing with 54 tackles, 10 sacks, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery while starting all 16 games for the second time in his career. Those 10 sacks led the Niners and were one more than he had in his first four seasons combined.
That production carried over into the postseason, where he had eight tackles, two sacks and forced a fumble in three games. All of that while remaining one of the league’s best and most versatile run defenders, capable of playing on the edge on early downs and moving inside in obvious passing situations.
With Armstead taken care of, the 49ers are now expected to begin working on extensions for Buckner and tight end George Kittle, both of whom are entering the final year of their rookie contracts, as well as monitoring the market for more of their own key free agents, such as safety Jimmie Ward and receiver Emmanuel Sanders.