Are the 49ers Holding Onto Their Super Bowl Window a Year Too Long?

At some point, the 49ers will have to make some difficult business decisions and get younger.

They're running it back one more time.

The 49ers have been holding onto their current core of players for five years in hopes that they will win a Super Bowl eventually. At some point, the 49ers will have to retool and start over. Should they have done so already?

The Bills just retooled and started over. They recognized that they can get close to a Super Bowl, but they probably won't win it next season, so why not get rid of all the bad contracts on their books, take the financial hit now and free up more than $60 million in salary cap space for 2025?

The 49ers are in a similar position. They've come close to winning a Super Bowl, but they haven't shown they can win one with their current team. And next season theoretically is the final year of their current Super Bowl window, because they'll have 39 unrestricted free agents next year, including four in the secondary and two on the offensive line, plus Brock Purdy will be eligible for a contract extension that could make him the highest-paid player in the NFL.

The 49ers could have spent the offseason trading and/or releasing overpaid veterans and building around younger players such as Nick Bosa, Brandon Aiyuk, Fred Warner and Brock Purdy, and that would have been smart. They started down that path when they released Arik Armstead, but then they signed a bunch of players in their 30s.

At some point, the 49ers will have to make some difficult business decisions and get younger.