We’re two days into the San Francisco 49ers offseason, and we might have to figure out a way to start pacing ourselves. Late Monday evening, 49ers tight end George Kittle gave disgruntled Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown a nudge on Twitter, and got a response. Brown subsequently started following Kittle, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Adrian Colbert on Twitter. It’s probably not going to amount to anything, but it’s catnip early in the offseason.
Pro Football Talk sees Kittle’s Brown recruitment and raises him some Odell Beckham Jr. speculation! PFT reported on Kittle’s exchange with Brown, but followed up by suggesting OBJ might be the guy the 49ers should and very well could pursue this offseason.
The 49ers considered it during that window last year when Beckham seemed to be available, and there’s already buzz this year that, if he’s available, the 49ers would be interested.
Back in March, Jason La Canfora reported the 49ers had “real interest” in Beckham. Nothing came of it and the receiver eventually signed a long-term extension with the Giants, inking a five-year $90 million deal. OBJ does not seem to have issues with the Giants like we’re seeing with Brown and the Steelers, but at some point the Giants might decide to go all in on a rebuilding project. It seems unlikely for now given that they seem content to tough it out for one more year with Eli Manning, but things could change.
Beckham just turned 26, while Brown turns 31 in July. Brown is currently one of the best receivers in the NFL, but he’s starting to get up there in age. All things being equal, OBJ would be the guy to trade for given his age. Of course, that’s assuming either gets traded this offseason. It seems highly unlikely, but it will be something to monitor over the next few months.
In the meantime, we’ll try and pace ourselves.