The 49ers provided themselves with additional flexibility by extending their right tackle.

Dan Powers / USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK

The San Francisco 49ers surprised some of their fans when they extended right tackle Colton McKivitz on a one-year, $5.85 million deal worth up to $7 million, tying him under contract through the 2025 season.

With the move, many assumed that McKivitz would be pegged in as the starter at right tackle for the upcoming season following an up-and-down 2023 year.

However, the 49ers’ free agency moves, matched with McKivitz’s contract, have placed them in a position to go best player available in the early rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft, which could very well be a tackle prospect to compete with the incumbent option, be it this offseason or for the future.

While McKivitz’s $7 million extension may seem hefty, the 49ers’ structure actually made it a good signing for both sides, providing the player with financial security and the team with flexibility, understanding that the right tackle could start if a replacement isn’t found in the draft.

The contract

McKivitz’s one-year extension is tacked onto his current deal, which was a two-year, $4.6 million contract that he signed last offseason.

With the extension in place, McKivitz’s cap hit actually decreased this season, while the 49ers added three void years to the deal to absorb his signing bonus for the extension.

His 2024 salary decreased from $2.5 million to $1.125 million, while the $3.41 million signing bonus has now been prorated through the 2028 season.

Here are his cap hits for the next few seasons:

2024: $2.913 million

2025: $4.678 million

2026: $2.338 million (void)

The move gives the 49ers options after the 2024 season, as they could keep McKivitz on his current deal, letting him play out the remainder of his contract. They could also extend him again, or move off his contract and eat a $3.16 million dead cap charge, while saving $1.5 million in cap space.

Even if McKivitz just plays out the remainder of his contract, it would be at a normal salary for a swing tackle and a cheap contract for a starter, while the $2.3 million dead cap hit in 2026 would be fairly small.

The impact

Should the cards remain as they are, McKivitz would enter next season as the 49ers starter at right tackle, but the team would have continuity, with the 27-year-old getting another year under his belt, while San Francisco kept its starting line from a season ago.

However, the key to McKivitz’s extension and the team’s free agency moves was flexibility. The 49ers are in a prime position to select an offensive tackle in this year’s loaded top-heavy class, putting themselves in a good position for the future.

But, should the player they draft not be pro-ready enough come Week 1, the 49ers would then have a fallback option they’d be comfortable with in McKivitz, who has a year of starting experience under his belt.

More importantly, they’re not attaching much money to the position, be it with McKivitz’s contract or a player on a rookie contract, finding cost-effective solutions to fill the void.

Now, McKivitz isn’t an elite option by any means at right tackle. It’s fair to say that he’s probably average to below average, given his play in 2023.

But, he’s a cheap alternative that allows the 49ers to truly go into the 2024 NFL Draft without worrying about filling needs in the early rounds, which is where they’ve struggled in the past.