ESPN Insider: 49ers to Be ‘Aggressive’ Before NFL Trade Deadline

Getty The San Francisco 49ers could trade for Carolina Panthers WR Diontae Johnson.

The San Francisco 49ers could trade for a WR after Brandon Aiyuk tore his ACL and MCL, and one ESPN insider believes they will be active.

The 49ers dealing with an injury crisis in the passing game, as Aiyuk is now out for the year and four other receiving options currently have issues (more on that below). ESPN insider Dan Graziano believes they will be looking for a trade before the November 5 timeline.

“They are kind of in shock out there with all of these injuries that just won’t stop. The Niners are always active in-season when opportunities present themselves,” Graziano wrote on October 23. “…They’re only a game out of first place in the NFC West, and they know they’re in the latter part of a championship-contending window with this aging roster, so I think they’ll be aggressive in trying to save their season.”

Graziano and other ESPN reporters also added a list of WRs they expect to be available with some intriguing names being listed. The 49ers have an extra third-round pick in the 2025 NFL draft, so they have a sizable trade resource should they make a move.

Trade Options for San Francisco

In that same article, Graziano mentions that Mike Williams will likely move on from the New York Jets. He also mentions that Carolina Panthers WR Diontae Johnson could move, while Jeremy Fowler names Panthers WR Jonathan Mingo and New York Giants WR Darius Slayton.

Of those options, Johnson and Slayton stand out as the most sure-fire options. Both have their ups and downs, but are currently producing decently with less-than-ideal options at QB.

Johnson has 30 catches for 357 receiving yards and three touchdowns this year, despite dealing with a two-QB situation with Bryce Young and Andy Dalton. Meanwhile, Slayton has 25 receptions for 312 yards and a touchdown for the Giants.

Neither would be overly expensive either. Both are in the last year of their respective contracts, with Johnson making a $7 million salary this year according to Spotrac. Slayton’s salary is significantly lower, however, as he is making $2.5 million in salary.

49ers Have Expanding List of Injuries

Besides Aiyuk getting injured, San Francisco was already dealing with WR Jauan Jennings and his hip issue. To make matters worse, the 49ers have several other injuries in the WR group including WR Deebo Samuel’s recent pneumonia.

“Chris Conley had an ankle sprain, he will be day-to-day, George Kittle, foot sprain, day-to-day, Deebo Samuel, he had kind of an odd illness, some fluid in his lungs so technically pneumonia,” San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan said.

While Samuel is now out of the hospital, Shanahan is unsure of his recovery timeline.

“We’ll see how he recovers here over these next couple days… Once we found out he had the fluid in his lungs and stuff after the game, then I believe they sent him over there. I’m not sure the timeline of it.”

None of the issues are long-term, but it is still a critical situation for the Niners. Even if the season can’t be saved, they must be monitoring more potential additions.