The San Francisco 49ers have already made one blockbuster trade this offseason by trading Deeb Samuel. Could they make another to help achieve General Manager John Lynch’s goal of getting younger?
At the combine, Lynch was asked about trade rumors surrounding Brandon Aiyuk and noted how moving Aiyuk could help the team get younger.
“You get calls and you always listen to calls,” Lynch responded to a question about Aiyuk. “I think since Kyle and I have been here, we’ve been certainly a top five, I believe, number two, cash spending team in the four years. Going into the fourth year, I think we’re the fourth highest cash spending team, so at some point you have to reset a little bit or at least recalibrate. You can’t just keep pressing the pedal and I think there’s some good that could come out. We need to get younger, I think we’re the oldest team in football trying to make a run at the deal last year. And I think it’s good to constantly get younger.”
Aiyuk is not the only player the 49ers could trade to gain assets and get younger. TWSN’s Marissa Myers predicted the team would trade Christian McCaffrey to the Las Vegas Raiders in a shocking move.
“The 49ers are coming off a season in which they went 6-11, which for the 49ers under Kyle Shanahan is falling way short of expectations,” wrote Myers. “While McCaffrey had a stellar season in 2023 with 2,023 scrimmage yards and 21 touchdowns, he only played in four games in 2024 after dealing with Achilles tendinitis. With how the 49ers are addressing this offseason so far, it’s clear their focus is to get younger in the NFL Draft and use 2025 as a retool year. With McCaffrey getting older, he won’t get as much in return as he once would’ve, but he will still get draft picks back for San Francisco, free up cap room, and allow them to get younger at the position.”
When the 49ers are dominating, it’s no secret that McCaffrey is the center of attention. However, his biggest concern throughout his career has been health. In 2023 he helped lead the 49ers to the Super Bowl, playing in 19 games total while leading the league in rushing and scrimmage yards. Last season the 49ers fell apart without him and missed the playoffs. He has just a $9.4 million cap hit. However, if the 49ers want to start getting younger, getting draft picks for McCaffrey could be a start.
Meanwhile, the Raiders have been aggressive this offseason. They shut down the possibility of trading Maxx Crosby by extending him. They traded for Geno Smith and are reportedly trying to extend him as well. However, Pete Carroll still needs an elite running back for his offense.
“With Smith at quarterback, Pete Carroll will know having a stable run game is crucial to the offense’s success,” wrote Myers. “At the current moment, Las Vegas does not have that. The running back room for Las Vegas currently consists of Sincere McCormick, Alexander Mattison, Ameer Abdullah, Zamir White, and Dylan Laube. There are no standout names that are going to actually lead the ground game. While McCaffrey is still coming off an injury, he provides the veteran experience and can still uplift the room more than what the Raiders have right now. Trading for McCaffrey wouldn’t stop Las Vegas from also drafting a running back, which would further encourage the trade for McCaffrey to have the rookie learn from.”
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