Punter Thomas Morstead is signing with the 49ers after beginning his career with the 2009 champion New Orleans Saints and playing the past two years with the New York Jets.
Punter Thomas Morstead is signing with the 49ers after beginning his career with the 2009 champion New Orleans Saints and playing the past two years with the New York Jets.
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SANTA CLARA – Punter Thomas Morstead is joining the 49ers’ offseason overhaul on special teams via a pipeline from the New York Jets, a league source confirmed.
Morstead, on his social-media accounts this morning, posted a photo of himself outside Levi’s Stadium and wrote: “Grateful is an understatement! #49ers”
His signing is expected to become official later today, a source said. The 49ers have yet to announce any moves involving Morstead, a 16-year veteran, or Mitch Wishnowsky, their punter the previous six years who went on Injured Reserve last season with a back issue.
After special teams miscues throughout last season, the 49ers have made sweeping changes this offseason, from hiring Brant Boyer as special teams coordinator and adding kicker Greg Joseph to compete with Jake Moody. Boyer, Joseph and Morstead all were on last year’s Jets team that opened the season coached by Robert Saleh, who got fired after four games and is now reprising his 2017-20 role as the 49ers’ defensive coordinator.
Another major change came earlier in the offseason when the 49ers replaced long snapper Taybor Pepper with Jon Weeks, who, at 39, is as old as Morstead.
The Jets released Morstead two weeks ago, ending his second stint with the franchise. He began his NFL career in 2009 as a fifth-round draft pick out of SMU, and he became the New Orleans Saints’ all-time leading punter through 12 seasons, the first of which included a Super Bowl win.
Morstead split 2021 with the Jets and the Atlanta Falcons, then punted for punted the Miami Dolphins in 2022 before joining the Jets in 2023, when he led the NFL with 99 punts for 4,831 yards.
Morstead had a 40.7-yard net average last season, down from his career average of 41.5 yards. Of his 960 career punts, 352 have pinned opponents inside the 20-yard line. His lone All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors came in 2012, when he had a career-best 50.1-yard gross average per punt (43.2-yard net average).
Wishnowsky ranks first among all 49ers punters with an all-time net average of 40.7 yards per punt. He had a career-low 36.3-yard net average last season through nine games, before going on Injured Reserve in November and being replaced by Pat O’Donnell.
Wishnowsky, 33, missed time in training camp with knee irritation. He is fifth in franchise history with 310 punts and 14,142 yards.
Morstead and Joseph were teammates for only the final couple of week last season. The 49ers announced Joseph’s signing last week, providing veteran competition for Moody, who struggled last year in his second season and has since altered his mechanics to a two-step approach on kicks, according to The Athletic.