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Steve Smith played in the NFL for 14 seasons and was one of the best wide receivers of his era. He retired at the end of the 2016 season and is transitioning into a media role. On Monday afternoon, he tweeted that the San Francisco 49ers will release wide receiver Torrey Smith, allowing him to hit free agency when the “legal tampering” period opens Tuesday afternoon. 

ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter later confirmed Smith’s tweet:

Torrey signed with San Francisco on a five-year, $40 million contract that contained $22 million in guarantees in 2015. His 2017 cap hit was set to be $9.475 million but the 49ers can save $4.675 million against the cap by releasing him. (Not that they need the cap space. They were already set to enter free agency with more than $90 million to spend.) 

As new coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch attempt to remake the roster in their image, though, it’s not necessarily surprising that they might want to jettison a high-profile, highly paid player that doesn’t necessarily fit the vision for the way they want to play -- especially considering his production. 

In two years with San Francisco, Smith caught just 53 passes for 930 yards and seven touchdowns. Still 28 years old, Smith will likely have a decent market for his services this offseason as he can still get down the field and stretch the defense, but he is not likely to command anywhere near the same level of salary.