The San Francisco 49ers are the NFL’s most dangerous team headed toward the November 10 NFL trade deadline — a true Super Bowl contender with a ton of salary cap space and clear-cut needs on both sides of the ball.
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox believes the 49ers should take a “big swing” and attempt to trade a 1st-round pick for Las Vegas Raiders edge rusher and NFL All-Pro Maxx Crosby.
“The 49ers have cap space to spare, which makes just about every potential trade target reasonably realistic,” Knox wrote on October 31. “(General Manager) John Lynch should consider taking a big swing at a pass-rusher like Crosby to boost the pass rush. The defense will eventually have Nick Bosa back, but it has recorded just 15 sacks this season after recording just 20 all of last season.”
Ravens Backed Out of Blockbuster Trade for Crosby
The 49ers getting Crosby for a 1st-round pick would mean the price has gone down since the last time the Raiders tried to trade him.
In March, Crosby was traded to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for two 1st-round picks … until the Ravens balked after getting an up-close look at Crosby’s surgically-repaired knee and called off the trade.
“With what Maxx Crosby said … it makes Eric DeCosta and the Ravens look worse than I originally thought,” NFL reporter Chase Senior said in March. “How about this, he was in the Ravens facility for 5 hours and didn’t meet Eric DeCosta once. After he flew across the country. After you made a trade of 2 1st round picks for him. After he became one of the faces of your franchise. What are we doing here? Spare me with the ‘it almost brought me to tears’ … bull (expletive).”
Maxx Crosby: Highly-Paid & Elite Edge Rusher
Crosby signed a 3-year, $106.5 million contract extension with the Raiders before the 2025 season, then suffered through a 3-14 season in which he butted heads with the organization after he was shut down for the final 2 games of the regular season, ostensibly so the Raiders could secure the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft.
According to one report, at least 20 teams contacted the Raiders about trading for Crosby before the aborted ravens trade, and it’s not hard to see why.
In 7 NFL seasons since the Raiders drafted Crosby in the 4th round out of Eastern Michigan, he’s a 5-time Pro Bowler and 2-time NFL All-Pro with 69.5 career sacks and 111 career TFL — a category he’s led the NFL in twice, in 2022 and 2023.
49ers Trade Pitch Swaps 1st-Round Pick for $106 Million Edge Rusher