“I was always the person [who] “He was confident and then he would talk loudly and say things like he was the best,” Lenoir said. “But first I wanted to prove to you and show the world who I am.”
Regardless of what the rest of the football world thinks, the Niners sent a resounding message that they agreed with Lenoir’s self-assessment on Tuesday when the sides agreed to a five-year, $92 million contract extension. Lenoir officially signed the deal Wednesday morning and then spent about 10 minutes discussing his long road to the deal with Bay Area media before practice.
During that conversation, Lenoir told a humorous story about how he almost never came close to signing a long-term extension in San Francisco. After the 49ers used a fifth-round pick in the 2021 NFL draft on him, Lenoir made a quick first impression with his physicality during the team’s rookie minicamp.
But that impression quickly turned sour when Lenoir posted a video of some practice replays in which he was too hands-on for an offseason practice. The video quickly went viral and resulted in a $100,000 fine for the team and a $50,000 fine for coach Kyle Shanahan.
“He endured our first day of rookie camp when I got a big ticket because you bother people too much and then put it on the Internet,” Shanahan said, laughing. “That was the first time I got mad at him, but I was very emotional about it despite what he took from me.” [from] my children’s college tuition. “But it showed we had the right kind of person.”
After some setbacks in his rookie year, including a costly mistake in a Week 3 loss to the Green Bay Packers that led to a drastic cut in playing time for the remainder of that season, Lenoir resurfaced early in the season. 2022.
In a breakout 2023 campaign, Lenoir claimed not only one of two starting outside cornerback spots, but also to be the team’s best slot cornerback, coming into nickel packages. He played 570 snaps on the outside and 311 in the slot, recording 84 tackles and three interceptions while allowing a -4.7 EPA (expected points added), 80.1 passer rating, and just one touchdown when targeted.
Lenoir has been even better this season, with 53 tackles, 1 forced fumble and 2 interceptions, while earning a 66.5 passer rating when targeted as the closest defender, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.
Lenoir’s production, combined with a tenacious approach that allows him to excel both as a run defender and in coverage, has endeared him to teammates like end Nick Bosa and linebacker Fred Warner. Bosa calls Lenoir “one of my favorite teammates I’ve ever played with” and Warner says Lenoir is having “an All-Pro type year.”
“He’s exactly what you want in a Niner,” Warner said. “He does it all, he plays nickel for us, cornerback, the physicality he brings to the position. Being locked in on the outside and being able to get his nose dirty on the inside, it’s something you don’t see a lot in the NFL, and that’s why they paid him like that “.
In fact, Lenoir said that when he received the news that the deal was closed, he immediately broke down in tears knowing that he had changed the trajectory of his family’s life for generations to come. As a bonus, he also has a chance to atone for the rookie mistake he made almost four years ago, although he maintains that he posted the video by accident.
“Now I can finally pay Kyle back. [his son] Carter’s license plate,” Lenoir said.
While the Niners now know they will have Lenoir for five more years, there are more pressing concerns about the availability of some of their best players for Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks. Bosa (hip) and tight end George Kittle (hamstring) did not participate in Wednesday’s practice after battling their respective injuries last week against Tampa Bay.
Shanahan said he’s not too anxious about Bosa and Kittle missing this week’s game, noting that he expects Kittle to return to practice Thursday.
Bosa’s situation seems more fragile. After suffering a hip issue in practice last week, he played 49 snaps against the Bucs with an injury he called “the worst thing I’ve ever had to go through” on Wednesday.
According to Bosa, rest is the only thing that will help his ailing hip, so it’s unlikely he’ll participate in training all week.
“It’s definitely going to be close [to play Sunday]”Bosa said. “I tried to keep going in practice last week and it didn’t work, so I’m going to rest this whole week and see what happens.”
Punter Mitch Wishnowsky’s back injury is also an issue for the Niners, so much so that they signed punter Pat O’Donnell to the practice squad on Wednesday.
“I’m a little more concerned about that,” Shanahan said. “It bothered him at the beginning of the year… And it’s escalated here last week and we’ll see how it goes this week, but that’s why we brought in another guy. So hopefully it will get better.” here, but right now we have some concern.
