The San Francisco 49ers are currently in the middle of a difficult contract negotiation with wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, but a more complex one awaits them next offseason.

Assuming he continues on his current remarkable trajectory, the 49ers will need to make quarterback Brock Purdy one of the highest-paid players in the NFL.

San Francisco owner Jed York said at the league's annual meetings this year that the Niners are prepared for Purdy and his representatives to ask for a contract that will reset the market. York intimated that he has no issue with Purdy requesting such a deal.

Provided Purdy is the same player he has been to this point, there will be willingness by the Niners to get a deal done, but ProFootballTalk's Mike Florio explained on Tuesday how a showing of unprecedented urgency to come to terms on a long-term contract could save them money.

Florio wrote:

"There’s a win-win strategy that both the team and the player should pursue. They should be negotiating a deal with the deadline of getting something done before the first postseason game of the 2024 season — assuming the 49ers qualify. The language of the labor deal opens the window for a second contract upon completion of the player’s third regular season. Why shouldn’t the player want his deal as soon as he can get it, given the risk of postseason injury? (Purdy knows that risk well, from the 2022 NFC Championship.) The 49ers should want to do it, too, because it will never get cheaper than it will be as soon as the regular season ends. It might actually be a little cheaper, since Purdy might be inclined to take a little less in order to get his financial security before the playoffs start."

He adds: "Nothing prevents the two sides from lining up the terms before the end of the regular season. They could basically agree on it now informally and sign it the moment the 2024 season ends. For both sides, it would be smart to do it."

To take advantage of that loophole would be an unprecedented move by the 49ers. As Florio points out, no team has done so since the rule change that has meant drafted players must wait three years before being eligible for an extension.

While his point about the advantages for both sides is well taken, it still seems like a move the Purdy camp would have little interest in making. Save for a late-season stinger last year, Purdy's body has held up extremely well since his 2023 elbow surgery. 

It's highly unlikely Purdy and his reps would be worrying about him getting hurt in the playoffs, and a player who has made it clear next year's contract talks are the last thing on his mind will almost certainly not want to start ironing out the details a month out from training camp.

Furthermore, Purdy and his agents will obviously know that, should the 49ers again make the playoffs as most expect, the best way to increase his leverage would be by going one better than last season and leading San Francisco to that elusive sixth Lombardi Trophy.

Signing between the regular season and postseason might give Purdy more protection, but the smart money says he would rather bet on himself to stay healthy and deliver and worry about the contract later.

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