Will the 49ers Allow Players to Hold Out this Offseason?

The past two 49ers training camps were overshadowed by holdouts.

Jul 29, 2022; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle (85) during training camp at the SAP Performance Facility near Levi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-Imagn Images | Stan Szeto-Imagn Images

The past two 49ers training camps were overshadowed by holdouts.

In 2023, Nick Bosa held out for all of training camp before signing an extension four days before the season started. As a result, Bosa was rusty for the first half of the season.

In 2024, Brandon Aiyuk and Trent Williams held out for all of training camp because they wanted extensions which they got just before the season started.

This year, Brock Purdy and George Kittle want extensions. And as we know, the 49ers usually take forever to negotiate new deals with their players. It's just how they do business.

So if Purdy and Kittle don't have extensions by the first day of training camp in late July, will they hold out? And if they do hold out, will the 49ers do something about it?

Last season when the 49ers were going down the tubes, head coach Kyle Shanahan used the holdouts as an excuse for the down season. He said training camp wasn't as intense as usual because so many stars weren't on the field.

I assume the 49ers want to change that. I assume they want an intense training camp this year, which would mean no holdouts.

So the 49ers can try their best to finalize extensions for Purdy and Kittle before training camp starts. But if they're difficult and refuse to compromise and threaten to hold out, the 49ers should trade them. They have to stop letting players hijack the team.

Of course, these are the 49ers we're talking, and caving to players during contract negotiations is what they do.