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(Photo by Chris Unger/Getty Images)
The San Francisco 49ers fell short of reaching the NFC title game, losing to the eventual Super Bowl champions, the Seattle Seahawks, in the divisional round. As a result, the Niners need to bolster their roster to stay on par with the Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams, both of whom reached the NFC Championship Game.
Nonetheless, are the 49ers in a position to offload draft picks to finally win a Super Bowl that has eluded them in the John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan era? San Francisco is in the speculation mill surrounding Las Vegas Raiders‘ Maxx Crosby.
Crosby’s name has been in speculation early this offseason, and the Niners, who are looking to win now, are among the teams whose name has come up in the rumor mill. Still, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco questions whether the 49ers should give up the draft capital needed to get Crosby.
“My opinion is no,” Maiocco said in a Feb. 19 video on his YouTube channel. “What makes it difficult when you’re talking about the 49ers going and getting a proven veteran player — a star player, a Pro Bowl player, maybe even an All-Pro kind of player — is that the 49ers do not pick until 27th in this draft.
“Is the 27th pick going to be something that nets the 49ers a player like Maxx Crosby or Justin Jefferson, or anybody else they could potentially go after, a top-flight player? I don’t think so. If 27 doesn’t get it done, are you going to throw in the 58th pick, throw in the 92nd pick? I just don’t think it makes sense for the 49ers to make a trade to pay twice for this player, Maxx Crosby. If the 49ers were like one player away, then yeah, I could see that.”
Niners Urged to Make Big-Time Trade for Pass Rusher
Nonetheless, former Los Angeles Chargers star Shawne Merriman believes that San Francisco needs to go for a home-run trade to land an edge rusher, either the Cleveland Browns’ Myles Garrett or Crosby.
“If I’m the San Francisco 49ers this offseason, I’m going to take a run at Myles Garrett; I’m taking a run at Maxx Crosby [and] I’m taking a run at these guys because they’re an instant upgrade,” Merriman told Maiocco in a video posted by NBC Sports Bay Area on Feb. 3.
“Nick Bosa comes back and nobody’s going to know how it is because what, his second or third injury now? I’ve been there, and after enough injuries you’re not the same player. I’m not saying this is going to be the case with him, but there should be some level of concern from the San Francisco 49ers front office on how he’s going to come back.”
Raiders Might Not Have an Interest in Trading With 49ers
Nonetheless, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Bonta Hill is putting cold water on the 49ers winning any sweepstakes for Crosby if the Raiders decide to trade him.
“I don’t think the Raiders are interested in trading with the 49ers, ” Hill wrote on X on Feb. 4. “Niners offered a ton for Khalil Mack. They didn’t budge.”
Eduardo Razo Eduardo Razo is a sports writer for Heavy.com, covering the NFL, MLB, and college football. He has previously covered the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB for NBC Sports Washington and NBC Sports Bay Area & California, and has freelanced for PSG Talk, covering Paris Saint-Germain. He also worked as an editor at Athlon Sports, focusing on MLB and the NFL. More about Eduardo Razo
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