During the 2019 NFL trade deadline, the San Francisco 49ers made a major move to acquire wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders. During an interview on KNBR, Niners general manager John Lynch explained he does not expect a similar deal to emerge for San Francisco prior to the upcoming trade deadline.
“I don’t anticipate, right now, anything big like the Emmanuel Sanders deal last year,” Lynch said, per NinersNation.com. “And yes, that is somewhat because we’re restricted (by the cap). We’ve also used 70 players, I think, on our active roster this year, so you come in with the salary cap, but then you eat into that. And then, you’ve also got to understand everything we do this year affects next year, where, because of the pandemic, the cap’s going to be way down. I think it’s forcing everyone, particularly the teams that are pressing that cap, to be very guarded in what they do.”
Only the Seahawks have less current cap space than the 49ers as San Francisco has just $916,953 remaining, per Over the Cap. Lynch admitted this makes it difficult for the Niners to make a significant deal before the deadline. As Lynch also pointed out, the 49ers and other NFL teams have to be prepared for a shrinking salary cap next season given the loss of revenue in 2020.
There have been some unlikely trade rumors linking the 49ers to wide receiver Michael Thomas. This seems unlikely given Lynch’s comments combined with the little salary cap room for San Francisco.
Lynch Refused to Close the Door on a Last-Minute Trade
The 49ers have dealt with as many injuries this season as any team in the NFL. Lynch did not close the door on making a last-minute deal if something pops up before the deadline.
“Always looking and working hard to see if there’s something that can make us better; otherwise, we really like our group internally,” Lynch added, per NinersNation.com. “Like I’ve said, we’ve got guys coming back. If we can slow the rate of guys going on the IR list, we think, internally, we’re going to get a big boost late in this year.”
Tevin Coleman & K’Waun Williams Have a Chance to Play vs. Seahawks
The 49ers may be unlikely to pull off a blockbuster deal, but the team is expecting to get some reinforcements in Week 8 against the Seahawks. Both Tevin Coleman and K’Waun Williams have a chance to return to the field after an extended layoff with injuries. 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan sounded more optimistic about the chances of both players returning compared to Jordan Reed.
“I think K’Waun and Tevin more than Jordan,”49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan noted, per 49ers.com. “Today was just a walk through. I didn’t have a chance to talk to the trainers. I’ll talk to them more today. Hopefully there are no setbacks and we get at least two of them up, but you never know until you talk to the trainers.”
San Francisco traded for pass rusher Jordan Willis who is also expected to play against the Seahawks. If the 49ers are able to pull off another trade, the player will not be available to play until Week 10 given the COVID-19 testing protocols.
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49ers Sound Off on Potential Blockbuster Trade