The San Francisco 49ers knew they would face difficult decisions in a huge offseason following their Super Bowl 58 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, and they have already made one.

San Francisco is set to release defensive tackle Arik Armstead, the longest-tenured player on the team, after he refused to agree to a restructured contract that would have greatly reduced his $17.4 million salary in 2024.

And another veteran could be about to depart, with Adam Caplan of Pro Football Network reporting the 49ers have approached fullback Kyle Juszczyk about a salary reduction. Caplan reported no agreement has been reached, so the situation is still "up in the air".

Expensive but effective

Juszczyk is set to count $7.58 million against the cap in each of the next two seasons. If they released him, the 49ers would save $4.91 million against the cap but would carry a dead money charge of $2.67 million.

One of the first signings made by Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch when they took over as head coach and general manager in 2017, Juszcyk remains an integral part of 49er offense because of his versatility and unique playmaking threat from the fullback position.

The former Baltimore Raven can essentially line up anywhere in the offensive formation, with his prowess as a receiver — Juszczyk leads all running backs and fullbacks with 10.3 yards per reception since 2017, while his 1,695 receiving yards are 17th in that span — forcing defenses to respect him as a passing game threat and react when he goes in motion. With his responsibilities beyond pass protection and run blocking, Juszczyk carries vastly more value than other fullbacks of the modern era.

Juszczyk's flexibility has facilitated the 49ers' success in 21 personnel, from which they are able to have five excellent pass-catching threats on the field in a package that is more geared towards run-game success.

Moving on from 21?

Throwing the ball, the 49ers had a positive play rate of 58.2% from 21 that was the highest among all teams with at least 25 attempts from the personnel grouping in 2023, per Sports Info Solutions. They ranked third in Expected Points Added. 

The Niners led the league in EPA when running the ball from 21, with their EPA per attempt trailing only the Ravens for teams with a minimum of 25 rushes from the formation.

Despite their effectiveness from 21, the 49ers may be more than happy to move away from it, as the reality is they are much more efficient from 11 personnel, when they have three wide receivers and just one back on the field. San Francisco's EPA of 36.33 throwing the ball from 11 was second in the league and 15.20 points higher than their EPA of 21.13 from 21.

Similarly, the 49ers led the NFL in EPA per rush attempt (0.18) and positive play rate on the ground from 11. Their total EPA of 24.47 fourth in the league and over 16 points higher than their league-leading EPA of 8.05 from 21.

For all Juszczyk's strengths, the 49ers were significantly more explosive from 11 than 21 and, as their dropback passing game evolves around an ascending quarterback in Brock Purdy, there is theoretically less need for the 49ers to keep the highest-priced fullback on the roster.

Still, the 49ers would certainly prefer to retain him and his versatility by reaching a compromise but, after deciding to part with Armstead, there's nothing to suggest they wouldn't do the same with an offensive player who remains extremely important but perhaps not as valuable as many think.

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