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The San Francisco 49ers are not having the 2024 NFL season of their dreams.
San Francisco is 3-4 heading into Week 8 and is on the outside of the NFC playoff picture at the moment. The 49ers have been decimated by a parade of injuries throughout the season. Christian McCaffrey has yet to play in the regular season. Brandon Aiyuk's season is over with a knee injury. Deebo Samuel has been in and out of the lineup, most recently being hospitalized with pneumonia. Rookie wide receiver Ricky Pearsall had his NFL debut in Week 7 after missing six games due to a preseason shooting incident.
However, that does not mean that the 49ers are dead in the water. Much the opposite.
San Francisco is rumored to be ‘aggressive' ahead of the 2024 NFL trade deadline. The addition of some new talent, and the anticipated return of McCaffrey for the second half of the regular season, could give the 49ers life down the stretch. The 49ers are obviously in a Super Bowl window, so it makes sense to make an aggressive more or two to try and solidify their chances this season.
But will John Lynch make a move? And if so, who would he target?
Below we will explore two of the best trades that the 49ers could make ahead of the 2024 NFL trade deadline.
49ers send a conditional fourth-round pick to the Jaguars for WR Christian Kirk
The 49ers are obviously hurting for wide receiver help after losing Brandon Aiyuk for the remainder of the season. That should make wide receiver their top priority.
Thankfully for San Francisco, there are plenty of players who seem to be available on the trade market. The most important questions are how much do the 49ers want to pay and what kind of wide receiver would they want to acquire?
The 49ers have a ton of cap space, so actually affording a player in 2024 shouldn't be an issue.
Jaguars receiver Christian Kirk could be an intriguing option. Kirk has proven that he was worth the large contract he signed in free agency a few seasons ago. Now the Jaguars find themselves on the brink of a lost season and a possible retool this offseason.
This, plus the emergence of rookie Brian Thomas Jr., makes Kirk an ideal trade piece.
Considering the size of Kirk's remaining contract, I believe the 49ers could wrestle him away from the Jaguars for a conditional fourth-round pick. Those conditions could include Kirk's performance for the remainder of the season and how successful the 49ers are in the postseason.
Honorable mentions: Giants WR Darius Slayton, Jets WR Mike Williams
49ers pull off in-division trade, sending a third-round pick for Cardinals safety Budda Baker
No offense to Malik Mustapha, but the 49ers can do better than him at strong safety.
Mustapha has been filling in for an injured Talanoa Hufanga, who has been battling multiple injuries over the past few seasons. Hufanga made a comeback from an ACL injury and played in two games this season. However, the then suffered a wrist injury that put him on injured reserve. Kyle Shanahan confirmed that Hufanga “tore several ligaments in his wrist” in Week 5 and will miss “at least a month” according to the team website.
Trusting Hufanga to come back healthy, especially during a crucial period of the regular season, feels a little too risky for me.
That's where Budda Baker comes in.
Baker may not be the superstar safety that he was a few years ago. However, he still has some high-end play left in him. He is not surrounded by a lot of talent in Arizona, which could be contributing in part to his lack of production. That being said, a move to San Francisco could revitalize his career. Or at the very least see him put up some elite numbers once again.
Baker could serve as a great replacement for Hufanga while he gets healthy. Once Hufanga is ready to play again, the 49ers will have a great problem by having too much talent at the position. In fact, I can see Baker and Hufanga coexisting in the same defensive scheme, so the addition could end up being a huge boon for the defense.
Baker only has one year left on his current contract. At this point, it would be a surprise to see the Cardinals extend him this offseason. This makes him an ideal trade candidate, so long as the Cardinals receive enough compensation in return.
Let's call this trade a third-round pick and perhaps another late-round pick swap for Baker.
Honorable mentions: Jaguars S Andre Cisco
