Lions Block the 49ers From Signing TE Brock Wright

It was so close to being a done deal for the 49ers signing tight end Brock Wright until the Lions blocked it with a matched offer at the last minute.

Oct 30, 2023; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Lions tight end Brock Wright (89) runs with the ball / David Reginek-USA TODAY Sports

Back to the drawing board.

The San Francisco 49ers will not be signing restricted free agent tight end Brock Wright after all. The Detroit Lions have elected to match the 49ers' three-year $12 million offer to Wright in order to retain him, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

This is the unfortunate part about attempting to sign restricted free agents. Once an offer has been made to sign a player, the original team gets five days to match it or let that player walk. Wednesday was the fifth and final day for the Lions to make a decision, which ended up being to bring Wright back.

It seemed like the 49ers had a very good chance at poaching Wright from the Lions. A three-year deal for $12 million with $6 million guaranteed looked like something the Lions wouldn't match. It's not like the Lions need a tight end. They have an amazing one already in Sam LaPorta.

However, the Lions clearly are fond of Wright and probably believe he is a fairly integral piece to their offense. Lions head coach Dan Campbell does have a background as a tight ends coach, so the call to bring back Wright was likely his.

Wright's strength is as a run blocker with some untapped potential as a receiver. He would've been an intriguing player to watch had the 49ers ended up signing him. Now, the 49ers must look elsewhere to add to their tight end room. It is a position that John Lynch cited before that they wanted to add to.

At this point, the draft looks like their best recourse now.