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The San Francisco 49ers are among the many teams currently making tweaks to their roster ahead of the upcoming NFL season. The 49ers' preseason slate is set to begin this weekend against the Denver Broncos, but the team has already made some noteworthy signings and cuts as training camp goes on.
That continued on Thursday when the 49ers cut a big-name cornerback: Eli Apple (as reported by Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team on X, formerly Twitter).
The 49ers had signed Apple earlier this offseason but evidently didn't see enough from him during training camp to want to keep him around long term
Eli Apple has been a strong NFL cornerback for quite some time, helping lead the Cincinnati Bengals to the Super Bowl during the 2021-22 season.
Apple has garnered a reputation as being somewhat of a loud talker, which is not necessarily a rare trait among defensive backs. However, he at times has found ways to get burned in the biggest moments, which has made him the target of social media trolls throughout the last few years.
Still, it's more than possible that another team gives the veteran a look as preseason gets underway.
Meanwhile, the 49ers are looking to bounce back after a rough 2024 season that saw them miss the NFL playoffs altogether after having made the Super Bowl the previous year.
A large part of that can be chalked up to injuries, so it's understandable that the team would be wary of bringing in older players like Apple–who will turn 30 this week–and therefore may be susceptible to injury.
The 49ers have made some big moves this offseason, including most notably signing quarterback Brock Purdy to a contract extension that made him one of the highest-paid players in the league.
It remains to be seen how they will fare in the upcoming season, which is set to begin on September 7 against the Seattle Seahawks in an early divisional test.
