The San Francisco 49ers continued what they label a winning offseason by reaching a four-year, $9 million agreement Friday with Pro Bowl guard Ron Stone. The deal includes a $2.35 million signing bonus.

Stone, 30, has been to back-to-back Pro Bowls with the New York Giants, who didn’t have the cap room to invest into one of the best guards in the NFC. The 49ers wanted to go younger at the position. Ray Brown went to the Pro Bowl last year but turns 40 in December.

The team plans to release Brown in June.

Stone is entering the 10th season of a pro career that began in Dallas in 1993. It took him until his third season to be a starter for the Cowboys, but he became a good one. He left in free agency in 1996 to join the Giants, where he played for six seasons.

During his NFL tour, he picked up three Super Bowl rings.

The 49ers feel as though they had one of the better offseasons in the NFL because they have been able to re-sign many of their top free agents, including halfback Garrison Hearst, fullback Fred Beasley, center Jeremy Newberry and safety Zack Bronson, along with adding safety Tony Parrish and defensive lineman Sean Moran.

The signing of Brown will take them out of free agency and let them concentrate on the draft.

It’s been tough for guards to get good money in free agency because of the tight salary cap. Former Browns guard Steve McKinney was the only guard to move to another team to get more than $3 million, but he had to move to center for the Texans to justify the money.

John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com.