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When the San Francisco 49ers traded away Jeff Wilson to the Miami Dolphins, it felt like the end of an era for more than a few fans in the Bay Area. Initially signed to the team in 2018 as an undrafted free agent out of North Texas, Wilson was a fixture of the Niners’ offense for almost the entire Kyle Shanahan-era and was able to seamlessly scale up or back on his role depending on who else filled out the running back room.
Unfortunately for Wilson, when Christian McCaffrey came to town via a trade with the Carolina Panthers, he became the odd man out.
After having a long, emotional conversation with Wilson about their five years together, John Lynch addressed the decision to trade the team’s current lead rusher to his former offensive coordinator in Miami, telling David Lombardi of The Athletic that “you try to take care of the guys that take care of you.”
With Mike McDaniel in place as the Dolphins’ head coach, Lynch felt confident that Wilson would not only like his new home but remain a fixture of his new offense.
“Mike wanted to assure us that he’d take good care of him,” Lynch told Lombardi. “Mike’s a great dude.”
John Lynch Reflects Further On The Jeff Wilson Trade
Discussing the deal further with Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports Bay Area, Lynch lamented that while the team loved having Wilson on the roster and appreciated his efforts, the arrival of Christian McCaffrey, when coupled with the impending return of Elijah Mitchell, created a logjam that would limit the North Texas product’s ability to maintain the same on-field role.
“At some point, you can only keep so many, just from a roster approach,” Lynch said. “Like we knew when we made the Christian move, someone was going to have to go, and, ultimately, Jeff’s the one. He was loving being an integral part of a football team. Once we did the Christian deal, and seeing Elijah close to returning, man, he wanted the opportunity to be able to do that. We assured him how much we valued him.”
After watching the Dolphins trade away Chase Edmonds earlier in the day in a blockbuster deal for Bradley Chubb, the pairing of Wilson to Miami felt like a logical one that even the player in question was excited about.
“At first Jeff was excited,” Lynch said of Wilson’s reaction to the trade. “He felt like Miami was a great spot because he knows Mike and the crew. And then the emotions hit him, and I was able to share with him that, ‘Look, you’re not only one of my favorite players that I’ve ever had the opportunity to be around, you’re one of my favorite people.’ And I think Jeff feels the same way.”
“You have to make decisions that are great for your team, but you also try to take care of guys who have taken care of you,” Lynch said. “I care greatly for Jeff and believe me, he’s got a smile that makes everyone feel good and he’s got a fight to him. I can’t say enough great things about him. I am happy for him and grateful for everything he brought here.”
Miami Appear Happy To Add The ex-San Francisco 49ers Back
One day removed from Miami’s big trade deadline haul, McDaniel was asked about what he likes about Wilson and echoed Lynch’s complementary tone about the hardworking rusher.
“So Jeff’s a cool story because when he was coming out of college I actually flew down on a vacation day and worked him out at North Texas,” McDaniel explained. “I got to learn a lot about him that day, much of which with the support of which with the support of the scouting department there, we targeted him as an undrafted player and I’ve seen him really grow into a professional.”
Further digging into his personal history with Wilson, it’s hard to feel too disappointed about seeing him go, as it’s clear his new head coach likes him as much as his now-former general manager.
“He’s a guy who’s magnetic,” McDaniel said. “He’s very focused on football, has a nature of playing football that I think helps his teammates in a positive way. He’s a physical guy that you can count on to bring that physicality and tone sets in that regard. He’s a great teammate and he’s a guy that, you really gravitate towards guys who expect nothing given to them and enjoy the process of earning stuff and that’s the way he’s always been. He’s been around very competitive backfields, he’s always rooted for his teammates and he’s one of the locker room’s favorite players while also trying to do his best whenever he can to help help the team, so I couldn’t be happier with the person we’re bringing to the Dolphins.”
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49ers Reactions To Trading Away ‘Favorite Player’ Jeff Wilson