There will be no fifth-year option on a 2026 pick, but the 49ers haven’t used it much in the past
Fans begin to file into the standing room section of the NFL Draft Theater ahead of Night 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft outside Acrisure Stadium, Friday, April 24, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pa. | Ethan Morrison / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn ImagesThe San Francisco 49ers' trading out of the first round on Thursday means they would not have a first-round selection. Starting with their second round selection of De'Zhaun Stribling, the 49ers will not have any players to exercise a fifth-year option. Something exclusive to first-round picks.
If this is a criticism of something lost or a crucial element, relax. The 49ers didn't use that thing much anyway.
The fifth-year option is for first-round picks only. It's a fully guaranteed contract that must be exercised after a first-round rookie plays three full seasons in the NFL. The 49ers have the following first-round picks eligible for the fifth-year option since the Kyle Shanahan/John Lynch regime took over in 2017. Note, 2022 first round picks-onwards have been omitted:
- Solomon Thomas
- Reuben Foster
- Mike McGlinchey
- Nick Bosa
- Javon Kinlaw
- Brandon Aiyuk
- Trey Lance
McGlinchey is the only player the 49ers followed through on exercising the fifth-year option. Nick Bosa and Brandon Aiyuk are both what you may think of as obvious choices to exercise the option, but both instead went to contract holdouts that led to extensions rather than playing on the option's single-year guarantee.
The only three players to remain on the team where the option was available were Thomas, McGlinchey, and Kinlaw. Both Kinlaw's and Thomas' options were not picked up for a variety of reasons, but for the sake of argument, their production just didn't merit the amount of a one-year, fully guaranteed option that the fifth year entails. The 49ers must do this after the third season, so if there isn't much over those three seasons, one would err on the side of not executing that contract and instead see what happens in Year 4.
So that's seven first-round picks, two still on the team, and only one fifth-year option used. So the lack of a fifth-year option might not be as necessary as one may think in the scheme of things. It seems more like the 49ers either have a player that is not worth using the option on or players whose play dictates that they need a better deal than what the fifth-year option can promise, and they get an extension anyway.
Is it nice to have? Sure. The 49ers managed to keep McGlinchey for another year before he left in free agency. Is it something that the 49ers might be missing when they get to Year 4? If history dictates, they will either be getting a long-term deal ready or letting the player play out their contract.
Of course, it depends on whether the prospect can make it that far.