The Facts: The two-week window during which time NFL teams may designate a franchise player opens on Tuesday. And for the first time in seven years, the odds appear high the 49ers will use that option. If the 49ers are unable to work out a multi-year contract extension with Gould, it would be a major surprise if the club did not use the tag to restrict his ability to sign with another team.
Diehards Line:
As NBCSports.com's Matt Maiocco notes, the 49ers have not used the franchise tag designation since 2012 with safety Dashon Goldson. The 49ers have plenty of salary-cap space to absorb a significant pay raise for Gould. The club is expected to have $67.5 million in cap room at the start of the new league year, according to figures from the NFL Players Association and overthecap.com. The franchise tag for a kicker is expected to be approximately $5 million for one season. Gould signed a two-year, $4 million contract with the 49ers on the first day of free agency in 2017. Gould was exceptional in his two seasons with the 49ers, making 72 of 75 field-goal attempts. He ranks as the second-most accurate kicker in NFL history, making 87.745 percent of his field-goal attempts in his 14-year career.