The San Francisco 49ers have been linked to Emmanuel Sanders for some time. Kyle Shanahan said that he wanted Sanders for eight years now. Let’s rewind to 2014 when Sanders visited the 49ers as a free agent. Sander’s contract was up with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was visiting a handful of teams, including the Niners, Chiefs, Jaguars, and the Bucs. At the time, Sanders would have complemented Michael Crabtree and Anquan Boldin.
In the video below, Sanders relives the time he almost signed with San Francisco. He explains how he’s in the Chiefs facility dealing with Kansas City’s head coach Andy Reid and is getting ready to fly to Santa Clara to sign a three-year, $15 million deal with the 49ers. Sanders said, “the GM calls, and he goes, ‘tell Emmanuel we’ll give him the deal.’ So I’m excited.”
Sanders goes on to explain that the Chiefs made him miss his flight to San Francisco. Kansas City actually kept Sanders overnight and offered a worse deal than they initially promised. The Chiefs wanted to give Sanders a four-year, $12 million deal. Obviously, Sanders was frustrated. He then explains how multiple teams, including the Niners, are calling him to try and get him to sign because they think he’s close to closing with the Chiefs.
So who does Sanders end up signing with? The Broncos, of course. The funny part is he made up Sanders made up his mind while he was at the Chiefs facility. He received an offer from John Elway that he couldn’t refuse. Denver offered more guaranteed money than anybody else. It’s a fascinating story, and Sanders is candid in the interview. In the end, he tells the story about Andy Reid screaming and staring at him and everyone else, wondering what happened. Tough to blame someone for wanting to play with Peyton Manning.