Colton McKivitz
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Colton McKivitz celebrates after the 49ers defeated the Seattle Seahawks 36-24 on October 10, 2024.
T
he San Francisco 49ers will soon have a very big decision to make. This offseason saw the franchise lock up their core players for the long haul, agreeing to long-term extensions with quarterback Brock Purdy, tight end George Kittle and linebacker Fred Warner. And even though these players will be on new contracts this season, fueling excitement that they will be around for while, 2025 will also be a season in which several key players will enter the final seasons of their contracts.
One of those players, right tackle Colton McKivitz, is in the final season of a one-year contract extension that he signed prior to the 2024 campaign– and will look to prove that he deserves an extension. McKivitz has been somewhat inconsistent for the team, but despite that, ESPN believes that the 49ers should try and extend McKivitz before he hits free agency next offseason.
McKivitz’s Role with the 49ers
McKivitz is not a flashy player for the 49ers and is oftentimes thought of as a placeholder player. But, over the last two seasons, he has not missed a single game and while he did commit more penalties in 2024, he looked much improved in both run and pass blocking. When looking at the 49ers’ offensive line, there does not appear to be a succession plan in place for McKivitz if he does leave and with star tackle Trent Williams in the twilight stages of his career, ESPN believes that bringing back McKivitz gives the team much needed continuity on the line.
“The problem here is less right tackle McKivitz and more the fact that left tackle Trent Williams turns 37 in July,” ESPN writer, Aaron Schatz said. “He could decide to retire at any time. McKivitz’s contract ends after the 2025 season, and the 49ers don’t want to be stuck having to replace both tackles at the same time. So the wise thing to do is to give McKivitz a small extension, maybe a couple of more seasons. He’s not a great tackle — he ranked 52nd out of 66 qualifying tackles with an 85.9% pass block win rate in 2024 — but he has improved in recent seasons. An extension would also give the 49ers some offensive line stability.”
The 49ers did not invest that much into the offensive line this offseason, signaling that they are happy with what they have and believe in their core. But, it is now up to McKivitz to show that he deserves another contract and another chance to prove that he is the long term answer at right tackle.
49ers’ Current Offensive Line Situation
Aside from Williams and McKivitz, the 49ers are slated to run it back with the same starting group that they had in 2024, with Jake Brendel at center and Dominick Puni at right guard, while Spencer Burford is expected to take over the starting left guard spot with Aaron Banks departing.
The only additions that the 49ers made to the offensive line were signing Andre Dillard and Nicholas Petit-Frere, drafting guard Connor Colby, and signing undrafted rookie guard, Drew Moss.