49ers tender restricted free agents Kendrick Bourne, Matt Breida
The 49ers on Tuesday made two moves toward bringing back a pair of play makers on offense.
The club announced it tendered restricted free agents, receiver Kendrick Bourne and running back Matt Breida, at the second-round level. Both would earn $3.259 million if they remain with the team in 2020 after both joined the club as undrafted free agents in 2017.
The tender means both can still field offers from other teams. If they sign elsewhere, the 49ers would be compensated with that team’s second-round draft pick, making it likely both stick with San Francisco.
Bourne, 24, established himself as the No. 3 receiver last season behind Emmanuel Sanders and Deebo Samuel. He recorded 358 yards on 30 receptions while tying George Kittle with a team high five touchdown catches during the regular season. He added six catches for 88 yards in three playoff games with a touchdown catch in the Divisional Round against the Vikings.
Bourne is known for his hands and route running more than his speed. He made a number of important catches throughout last season with 23 of his 30 grabs going for first downs, including 12 third-down conversions.
Breida, 25, averaged 5.0 yards per carry in his three seasons with San Francisco, though he fell down the depth chart last season while Raheem Mostert evolved into the No. 1 option. Breida started five games while missing three with recurring ankle issues that also bothered him throughout 2018. Breida didn’t play an offensive snap in the Super Bowl after he fell out of favor during the December loss to the Falcons in which he fumbled twice on one series.
Breida was the NFL’s fasted tracked ball carrier in 2019 when he was clocked at 22.3 miles per hour during his 83-yard touchdown against the Browns in October.
Breida will be in the mix at running back as the team re-worked Jerick McKinnon’s contract earlier on Tuesday. Mostert, Tevin Coleman and Jeff Wilson Jr. are also signed for the coming season.
The 49ers did not tender a contract to restricted free agent lineebacker Elijah Lee. He becomes an unrestricted free agent while the team decided to move forward with 2019 undrafted free agent Azeez Al-Shaair instead.