The San Francisco 49ers have 27 impending free agents this offseason after agreeing to bring back long snapper Jon Weeks. They still have the option to use the franchise tag, too, before the March 3 deadline.
However, the only player who would be a clear candidate for the franchise tag is kicker Eddy Piñeiro. And at the NFL Scouting Combine this week, general manager John Lynch told reporters that the team is “not anticipating” using the tag on their kicker this year.
“Eddy was obviously fantastic,” Lynch said. “We got a couple weeks before free agency to continue to work towards something… Obviously there’s great interest to try to figure that out.”
Piñeiro led the NFL with a 96.6% field goal conversion rate in 2025 after he made 28-of-29 attempts, including 6-for-7 on attempts from at least 50 yards. Piñeiro also went 34-for-38 on extra points.
The 49ers don’t sound like a team looking to get a deal done soon, though. It’s unclear what Piñeiro’s market value is, but Dallas Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey is reportedly asking for a deal worth more than $10 million per year, per ESPN’s Todd Archer. Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker currently makes the most of any kicker in the league at $6.4 million per year. Spotrac puts Piñeiro’s market value closer to $5.4 million per year.
The projected franchise tag price for kickers is $6.7 million, per Over The Cap. The 49ers have used the tag on a kicker before, too, after placing it on Robbie Gould in 2019. Gould and the team eventually agreed to a four-year, $19 million deal with $10.5 million guaranteed instead of the one-year, $5 million tag.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: 49ers ‘not anticipating’ to use franchise tag on this starter in 2026
Reporting by Oliver G., Niners Wire / Rams Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
