Editor's note: This week we conclude a series in which we will examine the 49ers’ top 10 scheduled free agents. For each player, we will provide reasons why the 49ers should bring him back and reasons why they should not, followed by a final determination.
Ben Garland, OL
Ben Garland served as the 49ers’ backup at both guard positions and center for the first three months of the regular season.
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Then, things got more simple. He concentrated on just one position, as he became the starting center after Weston Richburg was lost for the season due to a torn patellar tendon.
Garland, 31, started the final three games of the regular season and all three playoff games, including Super Bowl LIV. He is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent and he signed a one-year, $805,000 contract last offseason.
Reasons to bring him back
Garland knows the system. He knows multiple positions. And he is not likely to attract a contract for much more than the veteran minimum.
San Francisco 49ers
It is a low-risk proposition to re-sign Garland, knowing he is fully capable of giving the 49ers depth and flexibility due to his versatility.
Reasons he does not return
Although he would not head into the 2020 season as a starter, the 49ers might want to get more stout on their interior offensive line.
Daniel Brunskill showed his capability of playing every spot across the offensive line. Assuming Brunskill does not win a starting role over Mike Person, he could be groomed to play all of the spots on the interior offensive line.
[RELATED: Sheldon Day could receive attention on open market]
Final verdict
There really is no downside in re-signing Garland. The cost will not be exorbitant, and the 49ers do not figure to give him a lot of guaranteed money.
It would be more costly to find another veteran on the open market. And with just one scheduled pick in the first four rounds of the draft, the 49ers seem unlikely – unless they trade back multiple times from Round 1 – to make Garland expendable with a draft pick.
Therefore, the best bet is the 49ers re-sign Garland and have him compete for the same role he won during the 2019 season.