Fooch's Update No. 2: Not certain, but might indicate it is his account

@NinersNation flight1300 is his real account. I've talked to him on my editing page. The page he tagged isn't him. — Tony Galletta (@tony__bruhhh) February 28, 2015

Fooch's Update: The Instagram account was created in January. In looking through Stevie Johnson's Twitter account, he had a previous one he has since deleted. It is possible this is fake, but I'll try and confirm the account.

After a few hours of rumors, it would appear Stevie Johnson is in fact going to be released by the San Francisco 49ers. Johnson posted on Instagram a few minutes ago, and had this caption:

Played the hand I was dealt and wasn't overwhelmed or distracted. We shared some great moments Santa Clara/San Francisco. 1Luv~ Cool13

Things could change I suppose, but based on this Instagram post, it would appear he has been informed he will be released. There were rumors he was going to be asked to take a pay cut. He was either asked and declined, or the team simply elected to release him without inquiring about a pay cut.

His release would save the team $6,025,000 (Update: per Jason, it would actually be $5,590,000 because a $435,000 player would replace him on the roster). Based on Jason Hurley's numbers, that would give the 49ers $11,518,667. Based on Over The Cap's numbers, the 49ers would have $12,181,102 in cap space. Either way, it clears a sizable chunk of money. It comes at the cost of a 2015 fourth round pick from the trade, but Trent Baalke apparently is fine making that sacrifice.