Despite mass exodus, Rams rivals 49ers may face some veteran holdouts from camp

Perhaps it's not a good time to talk about the Los Angeles Rams' most competitive rival since hiring Sean McVay as the head coach in 2017. But no matter how great the strides made by the front office, the San Francisco 49ers are bearing down on the team. Except for an occasional solid season by the Seattle Seahawks, the NFC West Division has been a tug-of-war between the Rams and the 49ers.

That competition seemed to wane as the Rams claimed the NFC West Division title last season, while the 49ers plummeted to the division basement. Of course, the NFL loves Cinderella stories, which leads to the 49ers benefiting from early draft picks and a quite favorable schedule this season. But it may take more than rookies and competing against other struggling teams to put the 49ers back on track.

You see, some players want to be paid. And with negotiations not making much in the way of reported progress, some NFL Insiders expect some veteran players may hold out from the team's first opportunity to regroup on Tuesday, April 21, 2025.

Time to pay the Purdy

The 49ers face difficult negotiations before the team is ready for the 2025 NFL season. Some of the biggest names up for contract extensions include QB Brock Purdy, TE George Kittle, and LB Fred Warner. This is on top of the many players who have already packed their bags to play elsewhere. As of right now, NFL Insider Mike Silver expects George Kittle to be a camp holdout and gives a 50/50 chance that Brock Purdy will hold out as well.

That may not be what 49ers fans want to hear, but it's pleasant news for fans of the Los Angeles Rams, Arizona Cardinals, and Seattle Seahawks.

The biggest contract to negotiate for the 49ers is that of quarterback Brock Purdy. It was his contract that compelled the team to part ways with so many veterans to save funds to offer to Purdy via a new deal. And the team still has some impressive talent returning from an injury-plagued 2024 season, including RB Christian McCaffrey, WR Brandon Aiyuk, and WR Ricky Pearsall. But it all starts with Purdy under center.

Rams fans had their brush with quarterback challenges early in the offseason, but cooler heads have prevailed, and the Rams are eager to optimize another season with veteran QB Matthew Stafford under center this year. That does not eliminate the opportunity to invest in a rookie quarterback in the 2025 NFL Draft. Rather, it creates an ideal situation to add a rookie to the team and benefit from a season of watching Stafford perform.

Many draft analysts have linked the Rams to several top quarterback prospects in this draft. While that remains to be seen, 49ers fans are eager to see signs that veteran players are reporting. It was the adversarial positions taken by players that set the stage for a difficult 2024 offseason. For Seahawks, Cardinals, and Rams fans, that would be just fine for 2025, too.

As always, thanks for reading.

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