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One week after losing cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon to the Seattle Seahawks, another prominent San Francisco 49ers free agent is joining the NFC West rivals.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Tuesday evening, the Seahawks are in agreement with defensive end Kerry Hyder on a new three-year deal worth up to $17.5 million, a sizeable pay raise considering his $4.3 million in career earnings through seven NFL seasons.
A couple of Hyder’s former 49ers teammates, Fred Warner and Jimmie Ward, were among the first to react to the news.
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Hyder Led the 49ers in Sacks in 2020
The soon-to-be 30-year-old pass rusher had himself a career-best performance last season, his first as a full-time starter. In 16 games (14 starts) on the edge, Hyder racked up 49 combined tackles and a team-leading 8.5 sacks — 5.0 more than his next closest teammate. Although the 8.5 sacks were down from Arik Armstead’s 2019 high mark of 10.0, they still ranked 20th among all pass rushers across the league.
Hyder’s 68.6 Pro Football Focus rating last year also ranked 35th at the position. Similarly, his 11.3% Pass Rush Win Rate last year ranked 39th among edge defenders, according to ESPN. Perhaps most importantly, Hyder’s new head coach, Pete Carroll, was a longtime mentor to former defensive coordinator Robert Saleh during his three-year stint as the Seahawks’ defensive quality control coach from 2011-13 — meaning there ought to be some similarities to ease his transition into a new system.
Based on the Seahawks’ financial commitment to the 6-foot-2, 270-pounder, Hyder is likely being projected as Seattle’s new starting defensive end in place of Carlos Dunlap, who was cut earlier this month in a $14 million cap-clearing move after one season in the Upper Northwest. Tuesday’s addition leaves Seattle with approximately $3.6 million in cap space while San Francisco still boasts around $18 million in spending power, per Spotrac.
A former undrafted free agent, the Seahawks are Hyder’s fifth team in eight seasons, following stints with the New York Jets (2014), Detroit Lions (2015-18), Dallas Cowboys (2019) and 49ers (2020). For his career, Hyder has tallied 108 total tackles, 43 quarterback hits, 18.5 sacks and three forced fumbles in 56 games, primarily in a reserve role until last year.
Not all is lost for San Francisco though. According to Nick Korte of Over The Cap, the loss of Hyder stands to net the 49ers a sixth-round compensatory draft pick in 2022, while also taking away a potential fourth-rounder from the Seahawks.
49ers Re-Sign 2 D-Linemen, Add Ex-Cardinals Nose Tackle
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GettyFormer Carolina Panthers nose tackle Zach Kerr
Hyder’s departure will undoubtedly be felt next season, however, the impending return of 2019 Defensive Rookie of the Year Nick Bosa should help to cover up the vacancy. On Tuesday, the 49ers added some beef to the interior of the defensive line with multiple signings.
According to the team, fifth-year defensive end Jordan Willis and defensive tackle D.J. Jones are back in the fold on new one-year deals. The latter registered a career-high 3.0 sacks, seven tackles for loss and three quarterback hits in 14 starts last season while Willis, a potential Hyder fill-in, managed 13 tackles in seven games following a midseason trade from the New York Jets.
Joining Jones up the middle in 2021 will be former Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals nose tackle Zach Kerr, who also inked a one-year contract, per the team. At 6-foot-2, 335 pounds, the eighth-year undrafted free agent is now the heaviest player on the roster — 30 more than Jones and 19 more than linemate Javon Kinlaw.
Kerr, 30, was good for 32 total tackles, nine quarterback hits, 2.0 sacks and two pass deflections in 13 games (four starts) for Carolina a season ago, but the Panthers elected to release him last week, just one year into the two-year, $3 million deal the sides agreed upon last offseason.
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Chris Licata is an NFL contributor covering the San Francisco 49ers. Follow him on Twitter @Chris__Licata or join the Heavy on 49ers Facebook community for the latest out of the Bay Area!
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