SANTA CLARA — The 49ers have a history of signing their standout players to big-time contract extensions.
And it was not always pretty.
George Kittle, Fred Warner, Deebo Samuel, Nick Bosa, Brandon Aiyuk and Trent Williams had, at times, contentious contract negotiations with the team. The deals got done, but they took a while.
Kittle, Warner and Samuel got their second contracts completed just as training camp was opening. Bosa, Aiyuk and Williams had long ordeals that prevented each from participating in the team’s summer practices. The distractions last summer of Williams’ holdout and Aiyuk’s “hold in” appeared to have a noticeably negative impact on the team’s preparations for the season.
But this offseason, things went a lot smoother with Kittle and Warner reaching agreements with the 49ers on their third contract. The centerpiece of the 49ers’ offseason activity was quarterback Brock Purdy signing a five-year, $265 million extension through the 2030 season.
“The previous year we had some stuff go into the season,” 49ers general manager John Lynch said on the 49ers Talk podcast. “That wasn’t our motivation, but it did. So, do you learn? Sure. But it takes two to tango.
“All three of them were willing to work with us on certain things that were important to us. And I think we worked with things that were important to them.”
The 49ers made it clear that Purdy, Kittle and Warner are important pieces to the 49ers for what they have already contributed to the organization as well as what they are expected to bring to the table in future seasons.
“Those are three guys that we really want to be a part of, our culture and our team and organization moving forward — three really important players to us,” Lynch said.
The 49ers selected Kittle in the fifth round of the 2017 draft. Warner was a third-round pick a year later. Kittle and Warner are the two longest-tenured players on the team.
And the 49ers finally found a quarterback whom coach Kyle Shanahan wants to keep for a long time.
“Obviously, the quarterback position is paramount,” Lynch said. “Brock fits us really well. It didn’t take too long. ‘Hey, is this a guy we want to roll with into the future?’ And the answer quickly was, ‘Yes.’
“We’d seen it right in front of our very eyes. And we made that decision.”
Lynch credited Purdy’s agent, Kyle Strongin, for working together with 49ers contract negotiators Paraag Marathe and Brian Hampton to get the details on the contract hammered out in mid-May.
“As much commitment as we’ve shown to Brock, he’s shown that same commitment to our organization and knew it was important,” Lynch said. “We had six wins last year. Let’s not forget that. And that doesn’t sit well with anyone. It didn’t sit well with Brock. He understood we needed to take care of business.”
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