49ers lose 2025 draft pick, have one dropped to last in a round as result of payroll error
The 49ers have lost a fifth-round draft pick in 2025, and had a fourth-round pick this year move from No. 131 to No. 135
The San Francisco 49ers lost a draft pick and had another one fall lower in the draft on Monday due to a series of administrative payroll accounting errors, the NFL announced.
The 49ers will lose their fifth-round pick in the 2025 draft completely, and their fourth-round pick in this year’s draft will drop from No. 131 to No. 135. The NFL said the payroll errors were from the end of the 2022 league year, and that they resulted in “a misreporting of the team’s cumulative player compensation.”
Despite the errors, the league said the 49ers would have remained under the salary cap at all times, and that this was not done in an intent to circumvent the salary cap.
"We take responsibility and accept the imposed discipline from the NFL due to a clerical payroll error," the Niners said in a statement, via ESPN. "At no time did we mislead or otherwise deceive the league or gain a competitive advantage in connection with the payroll mistake."
The 49ers will have 10 picks in next month’s draft after their Super Bowl run, including the No. 31st overall pick and three in the fourth round. The No. 135th pick will take place after the compensatory picks as a result of the penalty.
The Chicago Bears hold the No. 1 overall pick in the draft for a second straight season. The draft is set to kick off on April 25 in Detroit.
