The San Francisco 49ers are going through a period of roster turnover. With a Brock Purdy extension looming, the 49ers are going to need to save some cash. Long-term 49ers like Kyle Juszczyk and Deebo Samuel Sr. are no longer with the team while many of their free agents are moving on to other teams as well.
To Dallas Cowboys superstar Micah Parsons, he knows that this is normal. Firing off an eight-word message on social media, Parsons had some fun watching the 49ers roster completely change over the last few days. Quarterbacks take up a significant portion of a team’s salary cap, and the 49ers aren’t going to have their quarterback on a rookie contract anymore.
Micah Parsons’ Message to the San Francisco 49ers
Parsons took to social media to let the world know that he knows how it feels to have a team with a huge quarterback contract.
“No more rookie QB, lol. Welcome to reality!” said Parsons on X.
The reality of the league is that with the quarterbacks taking up so much salary, teams have to make tough decisions and are forced to let some players go. The 49ers did move off of Samuel, Juszczyk, and Javon Hargrave but also lost Charvarius Ward, Talanoa Hufanga, Dre Greenlaw, and Aaron Banks to agreements with other teams in the early days of the free agency tampering period.
Parsons knows a thing or two about this predicament. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is on a record deal worth $60 million per year and is the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL. He has seen teammates come and go as the Cowboys have to manage their money with so much owed to Prescott. Parsons is still awaiting his big payday after the Cowboys picked up his fifth-year option for this upcoming season.
The 49ers haven’t even paid Purdy yet but are feeling the effects of having to lock up a young quarterback for the future. Quarterback contracts keep getting bigger, forcing teams to make vital decisions on who to pay and whether a huge contract is worth it. Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills just received a huge new contract worth about $330 million for six years. The 49ers likely won’t have to pay that but still owe Purdy a contract close to that.
The 49ers are in an interesting spot because they should still be in playoff contention but need to find a way to replace the players they have lost sufficiently. Also, players like Christian McCaffrey, Trent Williams, and Brandon Aiyuk need to be healthy if they want to have success next season. Purdy should have his extension by the beginning of the season, and the team surrounding him will look different, but the expectations to win are the same.
Parsons knows what this feels like, and he is well aware that it isn’t fun except when you watch it happen to your competitors. As seen in his reaction, Parsons is surely enjoying watching teams deal with the ever-changing quarterback market.