The 49ers are taking an unusual route to try and find tight end help. NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport on Friday reported San Francisco signed Lions restricted free agent TE Brock Wright to an offer sheet. Detroit now has five days to match the offer.
Detroit only placed a right of first refusal tender on Wright which means the 49ers won’t owe the Lions any draft compensation if the Lions choose not to match. It’s unclear what the terms of San Francisco’s offer sheet is.
Wright signed with the Lions as an undrafted free agent following the 2021 draft. He played in 41 games with 19 starts across three seasons in Detroit, posting 43 catches for 424 yards and seven touchdowns.
While he’s capable of handling some of the blocking assignments required of 49ers second TEs, Wright is also capable of shouldering a heavier workload in the passing game. His career receiving stats are well north of former 49ers backup TE Charlie Woerner, who signed with the Falcons this offseason leaving a vacancy on the 49ers’ depth chart.
If the Lions match, we’ll likely see San Francisco look elsewhere for a veteran TE with only unproven commodities Cameron Latu and Brayden Willis on the roster behind George Kittle.
