{"id":761452,"date":"2026-02-19T01:56:22","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T01:56:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/761452\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T01:56:22","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T01:56:22","slug":"49ers-retain-in-house-free-agent-with-first-move-of-offseason","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/761452\/","title":{"rendered":"49ers retain in-house free agent with first move of offseason"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">The 49ers have made their first move of the offseason to keep hold of an in-house free agent. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.49ers.com\/news\/49ers-re-sign-ol-nick-zakelj-to-a-one-year-extension\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">team announced on Wednesday<\/a> that it has signed offensive lineman Nick Zakelj to a one-year extension.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Zakelj was a sixth-round pick in 2022 but has started just two games in his four-year career with the 49ers. Last season, he was a member of the 49ers\u2019 practice squad and featured in only three games.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">However, with his ability to play both center and guard, Zakelj boasts positional flexibility that makes him a useful backup.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">And there is a chance that Zakelj could see himself promoted into a starting role next season.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Indeed, Ben Bartch and Spencer Burford, both of whom started games at left guard this season, are set for unrestricted free agency.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Bartch featured in only six games last season owing to injury. As such, it would be understandable if the 49ers are reluctant to extend a player who has endured consistent problems with injuries over his career.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Burford is coming off one of the better seasons of his career. Yet the inconsistency he has shown since being drafted by the 49ers in 2022 means it is no guarantee he is re-signed. For better or for worse, the 49ers have rarely been shy about going cheap on the offensive line, and it would be no surprise if Zakelj is afforded an opportunity to make the left guard role his.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Even if the 49ers move to re-sign Burford or Bartch, the prospect of a competition involving Zakelj cannot be ruled out.<\/p>\n<p class=\"duet--article--dangerously-set-cms-markup duet--article--standard-paragraph _1nfb3k4i _16w9vov1 _16w9vov0 ls9zuh1\">Given his limited role in 2025, it would appear a stretch to suggest Zakelj could start in 2026. However, with the faith the 49ers have regularly put in offensive line coach Chris Foerster to get the most out of unheralded players, Zakelj\u2019s extension could prove to be more significant than it appears right now.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 49ers have made their first move of the offseason to keep hold of an in-house free agent.&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":761453,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[7,6,52326,52067,1137],"class_list":{"0":"post-761452","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nfl","8":"tag-football","9":"tag-nfl","10":"tag-san-francisco-49ers-free-agency","11":"tag-san-francisco-49ers-roster","12":"tag-san-francisco-49ers-news"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116094814833138967","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/761452","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=761452"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/761452\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/761453"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=761452"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=761452"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=761452"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}