Pros And Cons Of The San Francisco 49ers Entertaining A Christian McCaffrey Trade

Despite continued injury issues in the backfield, the San Francisco 49ers’ run offense continues to perform at a high level. It ranks in the top 10 in yards heading into Week 6 and is averaging 4.6 yards per tote.

Former undrafted free agent Jeff Wilson has done most of the damage with Elijah Mitchell and rookie Tyrion Davis-Price sidelined. Over the course of the past four games, the North Texas product has tallied 353 rushing yards and two touchdowns at a clip of 5.4 yards per rush.

On the surface, it seems that San Francisco’s brass has other positions to worry about ahead of the Nov. 1 NFL trade deadline. The season-ending torn ACL cornerback Emmanuel Moseley suffered in Week 5 against the Carolina Panthers comes to mind first.

With all of that said, there’s one name San Francisco should do its best to acquire. His name of Christian McCaffrey and the 49ers faced off against the All-Pro back last week.

Immediately after San Francisco’s blowout 37-15 win, Carolina fired head coach Matt Rhule. A report from one well-connected NFL insider suggested that the Panthers were headed to full-scale rebuild mode with McCaffrey being on the trade block.

While we’ve read different stories about Carolina’s brass wanting to keep its young core together, moving off McCaffrey seems to make a whole lot of sense. He’s a high-priced running back who has dealt with injury issues in recent seasons. Running back also isn’t a position that will likely help expedite a rebuild.

Should the Panthers decide to move off McCaffrey within the next few weeks, San Francisco is one of the teams that makes the most sense. There’s also some potential issues with a trade of this ilk.

A True Dual-Threat Running Back For Kyle Shanahan

Shanahan loves himself running backs who can catch the ball out of the backfield. That’s been his MO since the current 49ers head coach started his career as an NFL offensive coordinator with the Houston Texans all the way back in 2008.

The likes of Steve Slaton, Roy Helu, Tim Hightower, Devonta Freeman and Raheem Mostert all come to mind. In fact, Shanahan’s best offenses have had that dual-threat guy.

Despite his ability to run between the tackles, Wilson has not been that guy. He has 43 receptions in 42 career games. McCaffrey? He’s already caught 26 passes in five games this season. Back in 2019, he broke the NFL running back record with 116 receptions.

The idea of McCaffrey being able to catch the ball out of the backfield would loom large for San Francisco, especially given Deebo Samuel’s ability to run the ball. It would create major mistmatches for opposing defenses.

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The Finances Of A Potential Christian McCaffrey Trade

This is where it gets tricky. It’s not necessarily from the aspect of the 2022 season. San Francisco can move some contracts around and fit in the remainder of what would be a pro-rated $8.79 million cap hit.

Instead, it’s the remainder of McCaffrey’s four-year, $64 million contract that’s in question. He has a cap hit of $19.55 million in 2023 with said hits coming in at $19.55 million in 2024 and $15.45 million in 2025, respectively.

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This is a whole heck of a lot to pay into the running back position, especially given the fact that Shanahan has gotten a ton of production out of cheaper and lesser-known backs.

From Carolina’s perspective, it would take on a $27.14 million dead cap hit by trading McCaffrey in-season. Said dead hit would be $9 million less if the team were to wait until the spring.

The one realistic possibility would be for McCaffrey to work out a completely new deal to help expedite a departure from Carolina. If he’s unhappy with the direction of the organization and wants to join a contender, this would be a pretty solid end result for all three parties.

The Cost Of Landing Christian McCaffrey In A Trade

This is yet another component we have to detail before drawing a final conclusion about San Francisco’s potential interest in CMC. What exactly would it cost to pry the star running back from Carolina?

Remember, San Francisco is without its first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft stemming from the decision to trade up for Trey Lance back in 2021. General manager John Lynch and Co. are not going to offer up a future first-round selection for McCaffrey. It stands to reason that his market won’t dictate as much, either.

The 49ers will have an additional third-round compensatory pick in 2023 after the Miami Dolphins’ decision to hire a minority head coach in Mike McDaniel. This would make it easier for the 49ers to offer up their second-round pick in 2023 and another earlier-round selection in 2024 to pry McCaffrey from Carolina.

Then again, it’s going to be all about how the market plays out here. The 49ers are not in a great situation from both a salary cap and draft pick compensation standpoint. They could very well make the decision that these assets are better off used elswhere. That’s especially true with star edge rusher Nick Bosa likely ready to earn a record-breaking extension next spring.

Final Verdict: Christian McCaffrey To The San Francisco 49ers?

It remains a highly unlikely scenario. A lot of moving pieces would have to come together ahead of the Nov. 1 trade deadline. First off, Carolina would actually have to put McCaffrey on the block.

From there, the two sides would have to work out compensation heading back to Carolina. There’s also that who financial element I focused on above.

San Francisco boasts players such as George Kittle, Deebo Samuel, Trent Williams, Arik Armstead and Fred Warner who are already among the highest-paid players at their position. Would adding another high-priced player to the mix make sense?

Right now, it seems more reasonable to believe that the 49ers will address needs with lower-profile moves at other positions. Cornerback is one area that continues to be bandied about. Despite pretty solid play from the interior of their offensive line, the 49ers could also look to upgrade at guard or center.

With all of that said, there is a path to this happening. McCaffrey would be an ideal fit in Shanahan’s system, creating one of the best skill-position groups in the game. His dynamic dual-threat ability could make this offense unstoppable despite having a mediocre quarterback in Jimmy Garoppolo under center.

If San Francisco’s brass were to look to pull off a blockbuster trade, McCaffrey makes the most sense. Just don’t be disappointed when Nov. 1 comes without it happening.