The 49ers are operating with slightly different financial realities than a year ago as they wade into the offseason.
This time last year they had some $100 million in salary cap space following the first season of the roster remodel under coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch. That flexibility allowed them to make a significant move by signing quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to a five-year, $137.5 million contract that included $37 million in 2018.
But it also afforded them to make smaller decisions that came with risk, such as keeping defensive back Jimmie Ward on his fifth-year option, giving him the highest guaranteed salary of any defensive player at roughly $8.