Jacksonville Jaguars defensive lineman Arik Armstead is not exactly happy with the way the San Francisco 49ers handled his departure.
Earlier this offseason, the 49ers asked Armstead to take a pay cut, and he declined. San Francisco released him as a result, and he proceeded to sign with the Jaguars.
Armstead released a trailer video on his X account for an upcoming episode of his Third and Long podcast this week, and in the video, Armstead calmly voiced his displeasure.
“A lot has happened this offseason,” Armstead said. “I’m no longer with the 49ers. I have a new team. First off, I want to say I don’t have any animosity towards the organization. Kyle [Shanahan], John [Lynch], the York family. I did feel extremely disrespected.”
So, while Armstead is not harboring any hate toward his former Niners club, he certainly does not feel like the team appreciated him enough.
He went on to say that the 49ers made him an offer, but muted the audio when he said how much money San Francisco actually offered.
“Nine years of me being there, the fans deserve to know what happened,” Armstead said. “You know, I had to make some decisions.”
Armstead, who played his collegiate football at the University of Oregon, was selected by the Niners with the 17th overall pick of the 2015 NFL Draft.
He was a bit of a late bloomer with the 49ers, as he didn’t truly begin to establish himself until he logged 48 tackles and three sacks in his fourth season.
Then, in 2019, Armstead broke out, racking up 54 tackles and 10 sacks.
Since then, the 30-year-old had been a mainstay along San Francisco’s defensive front, although injuries limited him to just 21 games over the last couple of seasons.
Now, Arik Armstead is on the other side of the country. We’ll see if he can remain healthy in Jacksonville.
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