Since December, the 49ers have parted ways -- one way or another -- with eight of their 14 players who pre-date the 2011 arrival of Jim Harbaugh as head coach.
Andy Lee, the top punter in 49ers history, had been the longest-tenured player on the team since the 2013 release of long-snapper Brian Jennings. On Saturday, the 49ers traded Lee to the Cleveland Browns for a seventh-round draft pick in 2017.
The team's decision to move on from Lee was inevitable after the club invested a fifth-round draft pick in Clemson punter Bradley Pinion, the only punter or kicker selected in the draft.