The San Francisco 49ers brought in Seattle Seahawks restricted free agent tackle Garry Gilliam for a visit on Thursday.
Sheil Kapadia of ESPN is reporting that the 49ers made a multi-year offer to the offensive lineman, which he turned down.
Kapadia said the following:
"Per a league source, the 49ers made an initial multi-year offer to Seahawks RFA Garry Gilliam that he turned down. The lines of communication between Gilliam and the 49ers are still open. If they don't agree to terms, the veteran right tackle is expected to sign his $1.797 million tender with the Seahawks next week. If Gilliam ends up signing an offer sheet with the 49ers, the Seahawks have the right to match it. If they let him walk, they receive no draft pick compensation."
If they signed Gilliam, the 49ers would not have to give up draft picks as compensation – despite the restricted free agent designation – because he was an originally signed as an undrafted free agent in 2014.
Gilliam started 13 of the 14 games he played in for the Seahawks last season. While he was a favorite in training camp to take the place of departed left tackle Russell Okung, Gilliam struggled and was benched in November for two games before returning to the starting lineup in December. He played at right tackle following a training camp injury to J'Marcus Webb.
In three seasons with Seattle, Gilliam has played in 44 regular season games while starting 30.
Gilliam played college football at Penn State and spent most of his years there as a tight end. He converted to an offensive tackle for his senior year and started at the position for the Nittany Lions.
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