Dre Kirkpatrick Heads to the Bay Area

Dre Kirkpatrick will enter his 10th NFL season now that he has signed with the San Francisco 49ers. The news was first reported by NFL insider Ian Rapoport once the team learned Jason Verrett would be lost for the season with a torn ACL. The terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Kirkpatrick, 31, has spent nine years in the NFL since being drafted 17th overall by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2012 NFL Draft. He spent eight seasons with Cincy before heading to the desert to play with the Arizona Cardinals in 2020.

Kirkpatrick started 11 games for the Cardinals last season, nabbing 56 tackles, seven pass defenses and three interceptions. According to Pro Football Reference, Kirkpatrick allowed a 66% completion percentage on targets in his area for 660 yards and two touchdowns.

Fitzpatrick had visited the 49ers earlier in the Summer, but the two parties didn't reach a deal. In August, Kirkpatrick joined me on Off The Edge and said he wanted to join a team that respected his value as a veteran player.

"I feel like I should be compensated for the level I played at last year," he said. "I was one of the better corners on our team, led the team in interceptions, didn't give up that many balls, gave up two touchdowns the whole year. I just feel I should be compensated. I'm not asking for 100 million, just a little something more than the minimum."

Get our free mobile app

Kirkpatrick is the only active player from Alabama on the San Francisco 49ers roster, though safety Jared Mayden is on the team's practice squad. Alabama now has 71 alumni under NFL contracts, 54 of which are active.

Kirkpatrick's 49ers will travel to Philadelphia to play Jalen Hurts, DeVonta Smith and the Eagles in Week 2 at noon on FOX.