Nick WagonerMay 19, 2025, 04:56 PM ET
- Nick Wagoner is an NFL reporter at ESPN. Nick has covered the San Francisco 49ers since 2016, having previously covered the St. Louis Rams for 12 years, including three years (2013 to 2015) at ESPN. In over a decade with the company, Nick has led ESPN's coverage of the Niners' 2019 and 2023 Super Bowl run, Colin Kaepernick's protest, the Rams making Michael Sam the first openly gay player drafted to the NFL, Sam's subsequent pursuit of a roster spot and the team's relocation and stadium saga.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- After completing lucrative contract extensions with quarterback Brock Purdy and tight end George Kittle in recent weeks, the San Francisco 49ers had one more key player to take care of to wrap up their most pressing offseason business: linebacker Fred Warner.
On Monday, the Niners and Warner checked that box as he agreed to a three-year, $63 million contract extension, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter. The deal ties Warner to the team through the 2029 season. The reworked deal also returns Warner to the top of the list of highest-paid off-ball linebackers in the league at $21 million per season and adds $56 million in guaranteed money to a deal that no longer had any, the sources told Schefter.
While Purdy's deal represented the largest deal in team history (five-years for $265 million, including $181 million in overall guaranteed money) and the biggest raise the Niners have ever handed out, Warner's extension always figured to be a bit easier because he had two years remaining on the five-year, $95 million deal he signed in 2021.
Like with Kittle this offseason and running back Christian McCaffrey last year, Warner's deal was more about moving money around, adding some guarantees and lowering his near-term salary cap figures.
Under the terms of his old deal, Warner was scheduled to count $29.17 million against the 2025 cap and $26.71 million against the 2026 cap. Both numbers would have been easily among the two highest at the position in the NFL. Those numbers are expected to decrease significantly with the extension.
When Warner reported along with most of his teammates for the start of the offseason program in April, he made it clear that he had no concerns about the potential for a contract extension.
Although Warner is coming off a season in which he earned a fourth first team All-Pro appearance and his third straight, he played through a small fracture in his ankle for the final 13 games of the season. He revealed near the end of last season that he required painkilling injections to make it through the end of the year.
But Warner did not require ankle surgery and said he felt "great" when he returned for the offseason program.
With Warner, 28, Purdy and Kittle signed before the on-field portion of organized team activities begin, the 49ers can rest easy from a business standpoint as they head toward training camp.
In recent years, the Niners have engaged in lengthy contract negotiations with defensive end Nick Bosa, receiver Brandon Aiyuk and left tackle Trent Williams. All of those extensions didn't get done until late August or early September with each player missing most or all of training camp.
There should be no such issues for the Niners this year as they attempt to bounce back from a disappointing 6-11 finish in 2024.
