SANTA CLARA — Fullback Kyle Juszczyk is returning to the San Francisco 49ers on a two-year, $8 million contract just days after being cut, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on Saturday.

The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the deal hadn’t been announced. ESPN first reported the deal.

The Niners had officially released Juszczyk on Tuesday instead of paying him a $4.1 million salary this season and up to an additional $500,000 in offseason workout and per-game roster bonuses. The team took on a $3.6 million dead cap charge with the move but brought him back on the new deal. Juszczyk was nearly cut last season but agreed to take a pay cut to stay in San Francisco.

The 33-year-old Juszczyk was one of the first players signed after coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch took over in 2017 and has been a key part of the offense since then thanks to his versatility.

In an era when few teams use fullbacks, Juszczyk has played about half the offensive snaps during his time with San Francisco and has made the Pro Bowl all eight seasons with the team and nine times overall. He was a first-team All-Pro in 2023 and second-teamer in 2024 after fullbacks were added back as a position for All-Pro the past two years.

Juszczyk had 19 catches for 200 yards and two touchdowns last season, while also rushing for 26 yards and a TD. He has 184 catches for 1,895 yards and 13 TDs in eight seasons with the Niners, along with 237 yards rushing and six more TDs on the ground.

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