4 easy free agent decisions for San Francisco 49ers in 2026

These are no-brainers.

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The San Francisco 49ers are going to have tough decisions to make when it comes to their long list of free agents. However, a few players on their roster are not quite unrestricted free agents, and it should make their returns automatic.

Who are the four free agents almost certain to return to the roster?

Jake Tonges

Jake Tonges is a restricted free agent. The 49ers can place a right of first refusal tag on him, which is just over $3M for one year on the salary cap. That tag would allow Tonges to hit free agency and seek another deal, but any deal he gets offered can be matched by the 49ers. 

It will essentially end the free agency offers for a player like Tonges. San Francisco is going to match any offer that is not ridiculous, and no team is going to bend over backward to sign Tonges after a few strong games, replacing George Kittle. 

Keeping a quality Kittle backup for $3M is an obvious choice for San Francisco; the only question is whether the 49ers work out a legitimate extension with him or not. 

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Sam Okuayinonu 

Okuayinonu is in the same spot as a restricted free agent. He is an edge rusher, and his body of work is bigger than Tonges', so there may be a little more attention towards him. A team may slip in an offer just to see how tied to him the 49ers are.

Still, they need edge rusher depth in the worst way, and Okuayinonu has always defended the run well. It is hard to see any offer being too strong for the 49ers. 

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Chase Lucas 

Lucas does not have a starting work like the other two, but he has been a relied-upon special teams option, and he is a smart backup to have behind Upton Stout. The 49ers may even get away with no tagging him due to his inexperience and the unknown around him.

It is hard to see any team offering $3M and they could likely bring him back around the league minimum. 

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Austen Pleasants 

Pleasants served as the backup tackle with Trent Williams out and Spencer Burford starting. He did not flash, but he is a tackle with a start in the NFL. Those are not players you just let out of the building for nothing.

Pleasants is an exclusive rights free agent, which is even more in the team's favor. The 49ers simply have to offer Pleasants a contract, and he will have to accept it. They will retain him for the league minimum.