The San Francisco 49ers are suddenly lacking depth at linebacker after the stunning news that Chris Borland plans to retire and this comes after Patrick Willis also announced his retirement this offseason and that could lead to the team looking at Mason Foster, Brandon Spikes, Rolando McClain, Lance Briggs, Dwight Freeney and Geno Hayes as potential options.
Willis retired after dealing with injuries the past two seasons and Borland made his surprising announcement on Monday, citing issues with head injuries as his reason. According to ESPN.com, the 49ers were not expecting this decision and it came after Borland stepped up and played very well for the team last season when Willis went down. The 24 year old said that "concerns about long range effects from head trauma" is what made him think about his career and ultimately deciding to retire.
According to ESPN Niners reporter Paul Gutierrez, the team now may look at some linebacker option in free agency and the draft, as names like Mason Foster, Brandon Spikes, Rolando McClain and Lance Briggs are all available. The 49ers ranked in the top 10 in passing yards and rushing yards allowed per game on defense last season and losing both Willis and Borland will make it tough to build things back up at linebacker, but there are options out there.
Spikes is coming off a solid season with the Bills last year, making 54 tackles and one sack in 10 games and he is likely not going back to Buffalo. Spikes played on a one year deal worth $3.25 million and it came after he played the first four years of his career with the Patriots. Spikes has played on a winning team before and he could be a low risk option for the 49ers if they want to add someone to help take over for Borland, at least in the short term.
Mason Foster could be a potential target, as he looked like he would be signing with the Bears, but right now no deal has been completed. According to ESPN Chicago reporter Michael C. Wright, the talks between Foster and the Bears are "not close" and now the Borland news could get the Niners interested in him. Foster is a young player at just 26 years old and he comes in after having a solid season with the Buccaneers, making 62 tackles while playing in 10 games. Foster had 90 tackles and two sacks in 2013 and he set a career high with 106 tackles in 2012 for the Bucs.
Rolando McClain and Lance Briggs are solid veteran options and they likely would not cost much on the salary cap if they were brought in. McClain had a bounce back season last year for the Cowboys after he previously retired, while Briggs had a strong run with the Bears in the past, but is coming off of an injury season. Briggs might be a bit on the old side for the 49ers, but he is a good tackler and a smart player and could be a fit for Jim Tomsula.
The 49ers went 8-8 last season and missed the playoffs for the first time in three years, which led to the team getting rid of Jim Harbaugh.