The San Francisco 49ers announced on Tuesday that they have released safety Antoine Bethea.
"Antoine is a true professional in every sense and I have a great deal of respect for the way he has gone about his business throughout his career," said General Manager John Lynch. "We would like to thank him for the positive impact he has had on this team both as a player and as a leader, on and off the field. We wish Antoine, and his family, great success in the future."
Bethea (5-11, 206) originally signed with San Francisco on March 11, 2014 and started all 39 games in which he appeared for the 49ers. Over the past three seasons, he registered 318 tackles, five interceptions, 15 passes defensed, 2.0 sacks, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. In 2016, he finished with a team-high 141 tackles to go along with one interception, three passes defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
A 32-year-old native of Newport News, VA, Bethea was a three-time All-Mid-Eastern Conference Selection at Howard University.
