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The NFL free agency safety mark is slowly sorting itself out. Jason LaCanfora is reporting that Ed Reed is close to signing a contract with the Houston Texans. LaCanfora reported the deal is two years and speculated it would be in the $5-6 million per year range.
In other safety news, Charles Woodson made an appearance on NFL Network and told them he felt shunned thus far, thinking there would be more interest. The 49ers hosted Woodson last week, but he left town without a contract. After reports Woodson was seen at the airport, his agent went so far as to say contract numbers had not been discussed between the two sides.
The 49ers ended up signing Craig Dahl to a three-year contract. Although some comments have indicated he will get a chance to compete for the starting safety position, it would seem likely that the 49ers are not done in the safety market. There are some free agent options, but the draft appears to be the likely next step for the 49ers. They could still sign Woodson or talk with Michael Huff, but it seems like the depth chart is already approaching the breaking point.
I updated our mock draft database earlier today, and safety continues to make four appearances. Matt Elam showed up three times, and Jonathan Cyprien made one appearance. It is always hard to predict what the 49ers front office will do in free agency and the draft, and it is even more difficult at the safety position this year. The team has several safeties on the roster, but it is hard to tell what the team thinks of them.
Do they see Trenton Robinson as a guy who could compete for some serious playing time in the secondary, or is he a guy who is destined for special teams play? He didn't get much of either, which would seem to indicate he didn't exactly wow on special teams.
What do they make of C.J. Spillman? He's a special teams ace, but it remains to be seen if they think he is a starting caliber safety.
Assuming the team does not sign a Woodson or Huff, this draft will tell us a lot about what they think of the safety position as it currently stands. I expect a higher pick on safety, but this team has surprised me before.