49ers exercise fifth-year contract option for 2020 on DeForest Buckner

Share

The 49ers on Wednesday picked up the fifth-year option on Pro Bowl defensive tackle DeForest Buckner for the 2020 season, but the club does not want the union to end there.

Buckner, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, is scheduled to make nearly $12.5 million in 2020. The one-year deal becomes fully guaranteed on the first day of the new league year in March 2020.

The sides were eligible to enter into negotiations to extend Buckner’s contract this offseason for the first time. And, eventually, the 49ers would like to secure him with a long-term contract that could make him one of the highest paid defensive players in the NFL.

“I would love nothing more than for DeFo to be here,” 49ers general manager John Lynch said recently. “We’ve got a long time to work on that. He’s very important to us. He’s another guy who’s a big part of what we’re doing.

“(I) just love everything about him and the way he goes about his business, his profession. I think he’s a special player and we’d like to keep him here for a long time.”

[RELATED: Buckner not worried about contract extension]

Buckner is coming off his best NFL season. He was added to the NFC Pro Bowl as an alternate after recording a career-best 12 sacks. He is entering the final year of his original four-year, $18.2 million contract.

Contact Us