The San Francisco 49ers stand at 5-2 after a 20-10 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday Night Football, moving them to the No. 2 seed in the NFC.
That came without star linebacker Fred Warner, who suffered a season-ending injury in San Francisco’s 30-19 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the defense still stole the show, allowing only two scores in a dominant performance.
After the game, head coach Kyle Shanahan revealed edge rusher Bryce Huff and center Jake Brendel will both miss multiple weeks with hamstring injuries, only adding to the team’s injury woes. That makes the need for a pass-rusher even more pressing, as the 49ers had already been without Nick Bosa for a few weeks.
Ahead of the trade deadline, the 49ers have been linked to a pass-rusher as their most logical move, but Shanahan did say on Monday that they aren’t looking to make a move at the expense of next year’s team.
So, could the 49ers be both buyers AND sellers at the trade deadline?
As mentioned above, a pass-rusher seems like the most realistic target for San Francisco at the deadline. And there could be quite a few that come available, specifically from teams like the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets, who have good edge rush talent but have really struggled to start the year.
San Francisco could also go after a linebacker, but it may not make sense for the future, as nearly the entire room is under contract for next season. Plus, it gives the team a good chance to evaluate Tatum Bethune alongside Dee Winters after the team spent a seventh-round pick on the former last year.
Who could the 49ers look to trade?
One immediate position that comes to mind is at safety, where the 49ers are starting to get a logjam with Malik Mustapha’s return.
The 49ers rotated four safeties on Sunday: Mustapha, Ji’Ayir Brown, Marques Sigle, and Jason Pinnock. Pinnock played more big nickel with cornerback Upton Stout out, while Chase Lucas got most of the nickel reps at the end of the game.
Pinnock has seemed to be the odd man out, so it wouldn’t be surprising if San Francisco moves his one-year deal to pick up an extra late Day 3 pick.
While injuries have hampered essentially every other position on the roster, it wouldn’t be surprising if the 49ers also look for a potential receiver move with one of their veterans. San Francisco should get Ricky Pearsall back soon, if not this week, and Brandon Aiyuk could look to return in a few weeks after his recovery from a torn ACL and MCL.
With the two and Jauan Jennings in the fold, the 49ers would only have three roster spots for the following players: Kendrick Bourne, Marques Valdez-Scantling, Demarcus Robinson, Skyy Moore, and Jordan Watkins.
Watkins and Moore seem safe, considering one was just drafted in the fifth round, while the 49ers spent a draft pick to acquire the other this offseason. Bourne has played well since signing with the 49ers. That leaves the other two on the outside looking in.
Robinson hasn’t been what the 49ers have wanted since they signed him to a two-year, $8 million deal in the offseason. If there’s a suitor that needs receiving depth, that could be an option.
However, the 49ers are regularly injured at the position, so they may truly never be in a position where a logjam actually exists.
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