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2014 NFL free agency gets underway in five hours, which means rumors will pick up steam as teams start "officially" hosting players. There will be some deals done immediately after 1 p.m. PT, but most deals will take a little longer. Amidst all that, the silly season of rumors will keep us entertained and/or on edge over the coming days.
The San Francisco 49ers have been a fairly quiet team early in free agency. They signed Glenn Dorsey fairly quickly last year, but otherwise they took their time getting deals done. Given that, news could be relatively slow specific to the 49ers. Donte Whitner and Tarell Brown are the two most notable free agents in terms of early rumors, so we'll be keeping an eye out for those updates.
While the 49ers might not be overly busy, there will be plenty of rumors surrounding other teams that will be noteworthy. With that in mind, I've decided to bring back the live blog we used a year ago. The idea is for this post to house the main conversation for the day. You can post rumors you see, news that hits and anything else related to free agency. I'll keep updating this with time-stamped tweets and links. As news particularly pertinent to the 49ers hits, I'll have new posts. That means, if Donte Whitner or Tarell Brown sign contracts elsewhere, they'll get new posts. However, if the Seahawks sign some random dude that is of note, but not of huge significance, that will get a link or embedded tweet in here, and not much else.
Depending on how busy things are, I will likely also have a wrap-up post at the end of the day to focus in on the 49ers-specific rumors. This will become a daily thing early in free agency, with a new live blog each day. After the first few days of free agency, we'll likely have the live blog carry over for a couple days. It will just depend on how busy things are on the news/rumor front. For now, this post will get pinned up top so people can see it all day. Feel free to drop in any links, tweets, etc as you see them.
3:30 p.m. - Eric Wright has re-signed with the 49ers. No word on terms yet
3:00 p.m. - S Jairus Byrd is visiting the Saints, WR Golden Tate is visiting the Lions, OG Geoff Schwartz is signing with the Giants
2:15 p.m. - Blaine Gabbert joining the 49ers!
1:55 p.m. - Looks like Vontae is coming off the market
Colts are expected to re-sign CB Vontae Davis, per team source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 11, 2014
1:30 p.m. - Cardinals improve their offensive line in a big way:
Former Raiders OT Jared Veldheer reached agreement on a 5-yr, $35M deal with Cardinals, per ESPN league sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 11, 2014
1:15 p.m. - Bethea to the 49ers!
1:00 p.m. - Straight cash homey!
Donte Whitner's new deal, reports @RapSheet, expected to be 4 yrs/$28 million. Was told 49ers didn't want to go much above $4M annually.
— Matt Maiocco (@MaioccoCSN) March 11, 2014
12:35 p.m. - Matt Barrows just tweeted this:
Hearing Antoine Bethea is another possibility at safety for #49ers.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) March 11, 2014
11:35 a.m. - Phil Dawson is returning to the 49ers!
Very excited & grateful for the opportunity to return to my team & be a part of chasing the quest for six! Go niners! #itsgood
— Phil Dawson (@phil_dawson_4) March 11, 2014
10:34 a.m. - The Raiders could be in on the Darrelle Revis sweepstakes
#Raiders are strong players in Darrelle Revis sweepstakes, along with Browns, according to league sources
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) March 11, 2014
8:45 a.m. - The 49ers reportedly have inquired about Panthers free agent safety Mike Mitchell
8:40 a.m. - The Browns reportedly are in the mix with the Jets and Lions for Emmanuel Sanders.
8:30 a.m. - To get this started, Donte Whitner to Browns rumors seem to be picking up steam.
Drumbeat's strong on Glenville and Ohio State alum Donte Whitner coming home to the Browns to anchor Pettine's secondary.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) March 11, 2014
it sounds like Washington is grabbing one of the Arizona Cardinals wide receivers.
Source says the #Redskins and WR Andre Roberts have agreed to a deal.
— Mike Jones (@MikeJonesWaPo) March 11, 2014
Additionally, defensive end Michael Johnson apparently is headed to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Our friends at Bucs Nation have the early coverage.
More specifics: Sources: DE Michael Johnson has agreed to a 5-year, $43.75M deal with 24M guaranteed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
— Josina Anderson (@JosinaAnderson) March 11, 2014
And Adam Vinatieri is reportedly going to re-sign with the Indianapolis Colts.
Colts re-signed veteran K Adam Vinatieri to a two-year deal, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 11, 2014
How to track free agency news
1. Niners Nation
2. @NinersNation on Twitter
3. NinersNation on Facebook
4. NN National Media Twitter list
5. NN 49ers Media Twitter list
6. NN 49ers Player Twitter list (sometimes they'll drop hints)