Kyle Shanahan says WR Christian Kirk chose 49ers despite other options

The San Francisco 49ers ' biggest free-agent additions this offseason came on the offensive side of the ball with the signings of Mike Evans and Christian Kirk. Evans was perhaps the biggest given his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the low-risk, low-cost acquisition of Kirk cannot be discounted, either. Given the 49ers' stable of pass-catchers now, it may have been a bit of a surprise to see Kirk join San Francisco.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan, though, said Kirk chose the 49ers over other teams who were interested in him. "[Kirk] could have gone some other places, too," Shanahan said, per NBC Sports Bay Area's Jennifer Lee Chan , "but he wanted to be in the right situation and he liked our place. " It's unclear who those suitors were, but the 49ers were clearly one of his top choices, given he ended up in San Francisco on a very small deal.

Kirk now slides into a reserve receiver role with the 49ers, likely behind Evans and Ricky Pearsall but perhaps ahead of Jacob Cowing. The 49ers lost a lot of pass-catchers this offseason, with Kendrick Bourne having signed with the Arizona Cardinals, Jauan Jennings' expected departure and Brandon Aiyuk's likely release. Tight end George Kittle is still recovering from an Achilles injury, too.

There wasn't a lot of depth behind Pearsall and Cowing before the Evans and Kirk deals. Now, that quartet should serve as Brock Purdy's primary receiver unit, alongside running back Christian McCaffrey and tight end Jake Toges. That is, unless the 49ers also bring in a rookie from the draft or acquire a veteran by other means.