We might even have a few updates here throughout the evening/morning . . .
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The NFL announced this evening that 444 players have become free agents and are now eligible to negotiate with any team in the league.
Those numbers include:
—Nine non-exclusive franchise players (signing team must surrender two first-round draft picks to original team if it decides not to match offer).
Those players are Arizona LB Karlos Dansby, Baltimore LB Terrell Suggs, Carolina DE Julius Peppers, Cincinnati K Shayne Graham, Houston CB Dunta Robinson, St. Louis S Oshiomogho Atogwe, San Diego RB Darren Sproles, Seattle LB Leroy Hill, and Tennessee TE Bo Scaife. The other franchise players have already signed their deals;
—55 players who restricted free agents who received qualifying offers and are subject to the right of first refusal/compensation system;
—336 unrestricted free agents;
—44 players with fewer than four years accrued who did not receive a qualifying offer.
The 49ers have 12 unrestricted free agents: TE Billy Bajema, OT Damane Duckett, NT Ronald Fields, RB DeShaun Foster, LB Roderick Green, WR Bryant Johnson, QB Jamie Martin, QB J.T. O’Sullivan, RS Allen Rossum, TE Sean Ryan, LB Takeo Spikes and DB Donald Strickland.
The 49ers do not have any other free agents who can negotiate with another team.
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Things are moving slowly this season. We’re more than 27 minutes into the free-agent signing period and there are no reported signings, unlike last season.
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UPDATE (10:35 a.m.): Still nothing to report. At this hour, the 49ers are not working on getting a visit set up with T.J. Houshmandzadeh. I don’t anticipate the 49ers being a major player there, but you never know . . .
The one player I’m confident the 49ers will make an effort to sign is FB Moran Norris. There aren’t too many of those “thumper” fullbacks available. One of them, Tony Richardson, just re-signed with the Jets, according to the NFL Network.
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