After three seasons in San Francisco, safety Antoine Bethea is out.
“Antoine is a true professional in every sense and I have a great deal of respect for the way he has gone about his business throughout his career,” 49ers General Manager John Lynch said in a statement. “We would like to thank him for the positive impact he has had on this team both as a player and as a leader, on and off the field. We wish Antoine, and his family, great success in the future.”
The 32-year-old Bethea signed with the 49ers in 2014 after spending the first eight years of his NFL career with the Colts. He’s been a starter in every season of his career, including starting all 16 games last season.
But the new regime in San Francisco wants to get younger, and Bethea was due $5.75 million this season. He has enough left that he can still play in the NFL, but he’ll have to go elsewhere, likely for less money.