49ers dodged a bullet by missing out on this former Raiders draft bust

The San Francisco 49ers have certainly gone through a handful of changes this offseason after a disappointing 2024 campaign. The team had 20 free agents this offseason and only re-signed three of them, which is quite a bit of roster turnover for one year.

Among the departures were key defensive cogs like Dre Greenlaw, Charvarius Ward, Talanoa Hufanga, Leonard Floyd and Javon Hargrave. The offense also lost Elijah Mitchell and traded away Deebo Samuel.

While general manager John Lynch certainly had his hands full rebuilding this roster, he almost made a disastrous mistake along the way.

49ers reportedly had interest in CB Damon Arnettte

Earlier this month, the Houston Texans signed cornerback Damon Arnette from the UFL's Houston Roughnecks. However, according to NFL reporter Aaron Wilson, the 49ers were highly interested in the young player.

"The Texans, who thoroughly looked into Arnette’s background, weren’t alone in having interest in the former Ohio State standout," Wilson wrote. "The San Francisco 49ers, including general manager John Lynch, reached out to the UFL about Arnette."

Thankfully, the Texans swooped in and signed Arnette before the Niners could. Not only was Arnette a major bust on the field after being taken in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Las Vegas Raiders, but he had a laundry list of legal issues off the field.

Lynch is certainly still trying to cope with the loss of Ward and other cornerbacks like Rock Ya-Sin, Nick McCloud and Isaac Yiadom, but signing Arnette would have been more negative than positive. Tre Brown and Upton Stout were both solid additions, and there was no room or need for Arnette.

If he were a good player and worthy of a second chance, then perhaps the 49ers would have been smart to consider him. However, in Arnette's final season with the Raiders, Pro Football Focus gave him a grade of 32.9, which ranked 232nd among 238 cornerbacks.

Taking a flyer on young players with a bit of a track record can be a worthwhile gamble for NFL franchises, but such is not the case with Arnette. While he was solid in the UFL this spring, he was far from a star, and the baggage that he brings with him would be nowhere near worth finding out if he can actually be a solid NFL cornerback.