3 49ers players who won’t be back after NFC Championship loss

The San Francisco 49ers had their season end in the NFC Championship game. Which players won’t be back for another go in 2022?

The 49ers were living the dream with upset victories in the first two rounds of the playoffs. They even had an NFC Championship lead over the Rams to give them hopes of making it to the Super Bowl.

It turned out it was not to be. Los Angeles scored 13 unanswered points to erase the deficit and end San Francisco’s season.

On the bright side, the 49ers should look to the future with confidence thanks to key pieces on offense and defense.

However, that doesn’t mean everyone part of this year’s playoff run will be coming back.

49ers: 3 players who won’t return in 2022

Josh Norman

Josh Norman signed on with the 49ers in September as a veteran cornerback to help their secondary.

He started for much of the season but it became clear late on that San Francisco was ready to start relying on some of their younger talents to get the job done instead. The development of Ambry Thomas especially resulted in Norman being increasingly phased out.

Norman was once one of the top corners in the game. Now he’s 34 years old. If he wants to spend another season with the 49ers, it’ll have to be with the understanding that he won’t be a regular starter.