The 49ers added ten rookies via the draft but they also see big potential in at least a couple of their UDFAs. In addition to giving Baylor wide receiver K.D. Cannon $45K to sign, they have also shelled out $62K guaranteed to ink Colorado outside linebacker Jimmie Gilbert, Tom Pelissero of USA Today tweets.
Gilbert’s $50K in base pay and $12K bonus gives him the highest reported bonus total of any UDFA this year, so far. It’s no surprise that Gilbert was highly sought after by teams after he earned third-team Associated Press All-American honors and first-team All-Pac-12 honors in his final season on campus. in 2016, Gilbert recorded 51 tackles, 14 tackles for a loss, 10.5 sacks, and six forced fumbles.
Gilbert’s wingspan enabled him to be a disruptive pass rusher while at CU, but the general knock on him is that he’s not particularly strong and hasn’t shown much in running situations. He’ll look to hook on in SF as a situational pass rusher.
Teams have $98,340 to spend on UDFA signing bonuses this year, as Nick Underhill of The Advocate tweets. Already, the Niners have invested a decent chunk of that space in a pair of players.