The San Francisco 49ers don’t exactly have the deepest wide receiver room at the moment, as they’re expected to have second-year wideout Ricky Pearsall lead the group when the team takes the field for their Week 1 matchup with the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on Sep. 9.

Brandon Aiyuk, the team’s true top wide receiver, is on the PUP list while rehabbing from a torn ACL and is expected to return after the first month of the regular season. Pearsall, Jauan Jennings, Jordan Watkins and Jacob Cowing have all missed time during training camp with injuries, and Demarcus Robinson may be facing a suspension stemming from a DUI in January.

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With all of that, the 49ers should be turning over every rock to trade to find upgrades at the position, and apparently they’re doing just that. According to NFL insider Jordan Schultz, San Francisco attempted to acquire Houston Texans wideout John Metchie III before Houston sent him to the Philadelphia Eagles in a trade on Sunday.

Metchie, 25, played collegiately at Alabama from 2019-21, earning All-SEC honors once and winning a national championship before the Texans took him in the second round (No. 44 overall) of the 2022 NFL draft.

After the draft, Metchie was diagnosed with leukemia and missed the entirety of his rookie season. He returned in 2023 to catch 15 passes for 158 yards in 16 games and another 24 passes for 257 yards and a touchdown in 2024.

While Metchie hasn’t lived up to the second-round hype through three years, some still believe he could recapture the magic he had at Alabama that saw him record 151 receptions for 2,058 yards and 14 touchdowns over his final two seasons with the Crimson Tide.

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San Francisco could’ve benefitted from the lottery ticket, especially considering the Eagles sent just a 2026 fifth-round pick and depth tight end (Harrison Bryant) to get the deal done. Had the 49ers offered more or something similar, they likely would’ve had Metchie (and a 2026 sixth-round pick) right now.

Instead, they’ll continue scour the trade block as well as the upcoming roster cuts in hopes that they find a wide receiver who could help Brock Purdy in 2025.

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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers showed interest in acquiring WR John Metchie III in trade