What Tyreek Hill's release means for 49ers in free agency
There's a former All-Pro wide receiver on the free agency market now that the Miami Dolphins have let go of wide receiver Tyreek Hill.
The San Francisco 49ers badly need wide receiver help, but that doesn't mean Hill should be on their radar as they look to rebuild their wide receiver room.
Hill's resume is perhaps the most impressive of any player on the free agent market this offseason. He's a five-time First-Team All-Pro, an eight-time Pro Bowler, and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's All-2010s team. He has six 1,000-yard seasons under his belt, including two seasons north of 1,700 yards in the 2022 and 2023 campaigns. All signs point to Hill's career ending in Canton.
However, Hill's best years appear to be behind him as he enters his age 32 season while returning from a catastrophic knee injury he suffered in Week 4 last season. He was carted off the field in the Dolphins' game against the New York Jets with a dislocated left knee. That injury also involved multiple torn knee ligaments including his ACL. Hill's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, said Hill's surgery was successful and that the WR is on track to play in 2026 according to ESPN's Marcel Louis-Jacques.
The 49ers could desperately use a player like the one Hill was three seasons ago. A receiver in his early 30s whose production was starting to decline when he went down with a major injury isn't the type of player San Francisco needs to be adding in a receiver room that needs at least a No. 1 receiver with Brandon Aiyuk's impending exit. There's an argument to be made they could use a No. 2 receiver as well with Jauan Jennings hitting unrestricted free agency and Ricky Pearsall's shoddy injury history through his first two NFL seasons.
Hill in 2023 was sixth in MVP voting after leading the NFL with 1,799 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns in 16 games. The following year his numbers plummeted. In 17 games he had only 959 receiving yards and six touchdowns. He earned 48 fewer targets and caught 38 fewer passes in 2024 than he did in 2023. His numbers were starting to tick back up a little in 2025, but he wasn't tracking to be anywhere close to the player he was in 2023, and that was before he sustained a major knee injury.
Because he was released Hill is free to sign with a team whenever he wants. His contract was terminated early which means he won't have to wait until the new league year opens on Mar. 11.
At this juncture of his career Hill is a tough bet to be able to fill either of those roles effectively in an offense that needs productive players at its top receiving corps. That's particularly true for a 49ers club that has had a hard time staying healthy over most of the last decade. Bringing in Hill, who may not even play in 2026 according to a report from NFL Media's Tom Pelissero on Monday, only adds uncertainty on the health front in an offseason where the 49ers need to be finding ways to get healthy.
The 49ers should at least kick tires on Hill, but they shouldn't be bringing him in unless they're adding enough help in their receiving corps that Hill is a luxury piece whose health and productivity won't make or break their offense.
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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Tyreek Hill release: Should 49ers sign free agent former Dolphins WR?
Two Tight Ends to Replace Chig Okonkwo
Tennessee Titans tight end Chig Okonkwo is unlikely to return, opening the door for potential replacements.
According to recent reports, two tight ends are being considered to fill the void left by Okonkwo's absence.
Jorge Masvidal announces $500k Gamebred tournaments – including a surprise comeback
Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA is back with a bang.
The promotion is planning two tournaments, each with a $500,000 prize pool, promotion president Jorge Masvidal has informed MMA Junkie. The tournaments will be 16-men each – one in heavyweight, one in lightweight. All four rounds of the tournament will take place in 2026 with a launch date of April 10 in Dominican Republic. A second event is being planned for May 1 in Miami.
Masvidal revealed four of the heavyweight matchups to MMA Junkie – including one surprising return to combat sports competition: former UFC title challenger Anthony Smith. He'll take on fellow UFC alum Chase Sherman. While he's frequented UFC broadcasts on the desk over the past few years, he retired from competition in April 2025. But now "Lionheart" is back.
Other revealed matchups include Guto Inocente vs. Mohammed Usman, Alexandr Romanov vs. Nikolay Kovalenko, and Todd Duffee vs. Bruno Cappelozza. The other four heavyweight matchups will be announced in the coming days, as will the eight lightweight matchups.
The upcoming events will be the first Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA has held since Nov. 15, 2024. Masvidal said the during the break, he's been fundraising and has finally secured the funds to kick the tires on a year's worth of events. Now that the promotion is "back," Masvidal thinks he's filling a big void in the MMA landscape.
"I don't mind taking the loss (from a smaller gate) for making a huge statement online," Masvidal told MMA Junkie Radio. "We're giving as much money as we can to the fighters. ... Really, who's doing anything right now? It's just worked out perfectly. As I wasn't able to pump so much GFC, the other shows were kind of dying off. And now, I don't know about these other shows. I haven't heard a date or anything. So we're coming in strong these next few years. People are going to have to move aside, brother."
Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA uses the same Unified rules of mixed martial arts – minus the gloves. From mid-2023 to late 2024, the promotion held five events under that ruleset. Fighters included the likes of Junior Dos Santos, Roy Nelson, Alan Belcher, and Hector Lombard among others.
"I never wanted to leave," Masvidal said. "The whole time I was working, in the shadows in the back. It's what business owners do. I was just hustling, brother. Seeing what I could do, what networks I could get on, what sponsors I could bring on board. I did everything to keep the dream alive, just like fighting. I was able to secure some funds, so here we go."
The current Bareknuckle MMA lineup for April 10 includes:
- Anthony Smith vs. Chase Sherman
- Guto Inocente vs. Mohammed Usman
- Alexandr Romanov vs. Nikolay Kovalenko
- Bruno Cappelozza vs. Todd Duffee
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA returns with $500k tournaments, ex-UFC star comeback