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Are the 49ers More Likely to Extend Charvarius Ward or Deommodore Lenoir?

It's unlikely the 49ers will extend both of their contracts because they also have to extend Brandon Aiyuk and Brock Purdy and they probably won't have enough cap space left over for two expensive cornerbacks.

Grant Cohn

September 18, 2022; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers cornerback Charvarius Ward (7) is congratulated by cornerback Deommodore Lenoir (38) during the second quarter against the Seattle Seahawks at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
September 18, 2022; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers cornerback Charvarius Ward (7) is congratulated by cornerback Deommodore Lenoir (38) during the second quarter against the Seattle Seahawks at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports / Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
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Both of the 49ers starting cornerbacks will be free agents next offseason. Which one are the 49ers more likely to re-sign -- Charvarius Ward or Deommodore Lenoir?

Ward clearly is the better of the two. He might be the best cornerback in the NFL. Last season, he led all corners with 23 pass breakups and ranked tied for second with five interceptions and he gave up just 1 touchdown catch. And he did this while shadowing no. 1 receivers the entire second half of the season. He shut down everyone. And he did so with a torn core muscle which he had surgery to fix this offseason. He turned 28 in May.

Lenoir is only 24, and he has improved rapidly all three seasons he has been in the NFL. He can play outside and in the slot, and last season he had 10 pass breakups, 3 interceptions and he gave up 0 touchdown catches.

It's unlikely the 49ers will extend both of their contracts because they also have to extend Brandon Aiyuk and Brock Purdy and they probably won't have enough cap space left over for two expensive cornerbacks. So if the 49ers have to pick one, I think they'll pick Lenoir. Not just because he's younger than Ward -- he's also cheaper. He would fit more easily into the 49ers' complicated salary-cap structure.

Plus the 49ers drafted and developed Lenoir, as opposed to Ward, who was developed by the Chiefs.

Ultimately, the upcoming season will decide which corner stays and which one goes. But as of now, Lenoir has the inside track.

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Grant Cohn

GRANT COHN

Grant Cohn has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily since 2011. He spent the first nine years of his career with the Santa Rosa Press Democrat where he wrote the Inside the 49ers blog and covered famous coaches and athletes such as Jim Harbaugh, Colin Kaepernick and Patrick Willis. In 2012, Inside the 49ers won Sports Blog of the Year from the Peninsula Press Club. In 2020, Cohn joined FanNation and began writing All49ers. In addition, he created a YouTube channel which has become the go-to place on YouTube to consume 49ers content. Cohn's channel typically generates roughly 3.5 million viewers per month, while the 49ers' official YouTube channel generates roughly 1.5 million viewers per month. Cohn live streams almost every day and posts videos hourly during the football season. Cohn is committed to asking the questions that 49ers fans want answered, and providing the most honest and interactive coverage in the country. His loyalty is to the reader and the viewer, not the team or any player or coach. Cohn is a new-age multimedia journalist with an old-school mentality, because his father is Lowell Cohn, the legendary sports columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle from 1979 to 1993. The two have a live podcast every Tuesday. Grant Cohn grew up in Oakland and studied English Literature at UCLA from 2006 to 2010. He currently lives in Oakland with his wife.

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