The 49ers could be looking hard at place kickers in free agency and the NFL Draft.
Robbie Gould, who arrived in 2017 the same year coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch took over, plans on playing somewhere else in 2023 according to a report by ESPN's Adam Schefter.
In six seasons with the 49ers, Gould converted 161 of 184 field goal attempts (87.5 percent) and 383 out of 379 extra point attempts (99 percent).
More impressively, Gould, 40, has never missed a place kick in 16 postseason games with the Chicago Bears, New York Giants (one season) and 49ers going 29-for-29 on field goal attempts and 39-for-39 on extra points.
On the day the 49ers cleaned out their lockers following a 31-7 championship game loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, Gould gave mixed signals as to his intentions. He said it would be "awesome" to if the 49ers brought him back for a seventh season while also noting that "unique" opportunities awaited himself elsewhere entering his 19th season.
Either way, it was clear Gould was not contemplating retirement. He has tested free agency twice in his career, signing with the Giants in 2016 and the 49ers in 2017.
"I was 35-of-40 (on field goal attempts) with two blocks. I kicked off at 40 years old, which I want to say is unheard of, but usually doesn't happen that often. I still have some pop left."
The 49ers could in theory place a franchise tag on Gould at a price of $6.6 million for the season, although that's not their usual mode of operation. The 49ers paid Gould a $4 million salary in 2022 with a prorated bonus number of more than $1.5 million for a cap number of $5,509,313 according to overthecap.com.
Before the 2020 season, the 49ers signed Gould to a renegotiated deal at a time when it it wasn't clear if he would return.
Gould's family lives in the Chicago area in the offseason.
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