Injuries have been ramping up for the San Francisco 49ers, who found a way to improve to 5-2 on Sunday with a 20-10 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
San Francisco will be without pass-rusher Bryce Huff and center Jake Brendel for multiple weeks due to hamstring injuries, adding to their already-loaded injury list.
Huff’s loss is especially critical because the 49ers were in need of pass-rush help even before his injury. Now, it is a clear hole on the roster, as Huff led the team in sacks (four) and tackles for loss (six). No other healthy player has more than one sack this season.
While San Francisco is 5-2 and in second place in the NFC, the season-ending injuries to Nick Bosa and Fred Warner have dimmed the light on the season and raised questions about how the team should operate at the trade deadline.
With such a strong record and the team playing hard, it would make sense to acquire talent, but the 49ers also don’t want to jeopardize their future, especially with stars out for the year.
“I don’t like to say imperative [that a player we acquire via trade must help next year] at all just because I don’t like to put an absolute on anything,” head coach Kyle Shanahan said about the trade deadline on Monday. “But yeah, I think that’s something that we definitely would prefer. Of course, we want someone to help us out this year, but I’d love it not to be at the expense of our team next year also. I know we all feel that way, and hopefully, we can find a situation that does both. And If not, you don’t do something like that just to do it. I’m really excited about the guys we have in our building right now also.”
The 49ers could look to make only one move for a pass-rusher, with several losing teams having talent at the position, and allow their younger players to develop at other holes on the roster. In that case, they wouldn’t have to depart with significant draft capital, and could potentially retain some with the compensatory formula in the offseason.
The 49ers currently have five picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, not including compensatory selections. They have their own first, second, and third-round picks. Either their fourth or fifth-round pick will go to the Philadelphia Eagles for Bryce Huff, so they’ll have the other. And they have a sixth-round pick from the Minnesota Vikings in the Jordan Mason trade.
According to OverTheCap, the 49ers are currently projected to have three fourth-round compensatory picks for the losses of Aaron Banks, Charvarius Ward, and Talanoa Hufanga. We’ll see whether those picks remain fourth-rounders, but that should take San Francisco to eight total draft picks.
So, they don’t want to give up too much draft capital in a potential trade, especially since next year’s draft will be just as important as this year’s in filling the team’s holes and depth. We’ll see how aggressive they’ll ultimately be in a few weeks with the deadline approaching as the team continues to impress. But, it might not be as “all-in” as expected.
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