49ers Rumors: Kicker Robbie Gould Won't Be Traded Despite Contract Dispute

Paul KasabianSenior ContributorApril 24, 2019

FILE - In this Dec. 23, 2018, file photo, San Francisco 49ers kicker Robbie Gould (9) kicks a field goal from the hold of Bradley Pinion during the first half of an NFL football game against the Chicago Bears, in Santa Clara, Calif. The S49ers have placed the franchise tag on kicker Robbie Gould. The Niners made the move Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2019, to keep Gould in 2019 for a price tag of about $5 million. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar, File)

Tony Avelar/Associated Press

The San Francisco 49ers will not trade kicker Robbie Gould, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

The 49ers gave Gould a franchise tag on Feb. 26. However, Gould has told the team that he desires a trade, per Adam Schefter of ESPN:

Adam Schefter @AdamSchefter
In a turn of events, 49ers’ franchise kicker Robbie Gould has pulled his contract proposals that he sent to San Francisco and told the team he will not negotiate or sign a long-term deal with them, and he would like to be traded, Gould said Tuesday.

Schefter provided more information on Gould's trade request, noting that he wants to be closer to his Chicago-based family.

"The 36-year-old Gould indicated that he has gotten tired of 14 months of contract negotiations and wants to be closer to his wife and children in Chicago. After 11 years with the Bears, Gould was released. He spent 2016 with the New York Giants before signing a two-year deal with the Niners. Gould's wife and three boys under age five stayed in Chicago."

Gould, 36, made a league-leading 97.1 percent of his field goals last season and has knocked home 72 of 75 overall in the last two years.

Meanwhile, Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker just inked a four-year, $23.05 million extension, per Schefter. Gould likely wouldn't receive those contractual terms given that he'll be 37 years old in December, but no kicker has matched his accuracy measures over the past two seasons.

If Gould made one more field goal in 2017, he would have led the NFL in field-goal percentage for two straight seasons. No kicker has done that since Eddie Murray of the Detroit Lions in 1988 and 1989.

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Therefore, it's not out of the realm of possibility that some team would be willing to give Gould a lucrative, multi-year deal, although it's not happening in San Francisco.

Chicago, where Gould kicked from 2005-2015, would seem like the perfect fit after the team cut Cody Parkey in the offseason. The Bears don't have a new kicker lined up yet, although they have some names involved in the competition including Chris Blewitt, Redford Jones and Elliott Fry.

Ultimately, Gould would be a great fit in Chicago, but he's in a standoff with the 49ers as of now.