San Francisco 49ers named potential trade destination for 5-time All-Pro originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The San Francisco 49ers have made the playoffs in five of the last seven seasons and in four of those years they made it to either the NFC Championship or Super Bowl before eventually losing in late January or early February.
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Last season, the 49ers overcame significant injuries and unexpected situations to rattle off a (12-5) record and make it into the playoffs. They knocked off the defending Super Bowl Champion Eagles on the road in the Wildcard Round but were throttled (41-6) in the Divisional Round road trip to Seattle against their rival.
To even make it to the second round of the playoffs last season is another restatement to Kyle Shanahan’s coaching. Brock Purdy missed nine games with a toe injury and backup QB Mac Jones stepped in and was able to lead the 49ers to several key wins, largely due to Shanahan’s offensive expertise.
The 49ers didn’t have a true No. 1 WR all year with the Brandon Aiyuk saga unfolding and George Kittle battled injuries off and on throughout the year. There were certainly plenty of games where the 49ers offense couldn’t generate explosive plays, but they found ways to win time and time again.
49ers listed as potential suitor to trade for Browns star Myles Garrett
Despite having Robert Saleh — who is largely regarded as one of the top defensive minds in the NFL — leading the defense in 2025, the 49ers finished middle-of-the pack with the No. 20 overall defense.
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Saleh took the Titans head coaching job this offseason so San Francisco turned to former Falcons head coach and longtime DC Raheem Morris to take over as DC in 2026.
While the defense still has plenty of talent if Nick Bosh, Dre Greenlaw and Fred Warner, the success will likely come down to those players staying healthy for the entire year.
Gary Davenport of Bleacher Report believes the 49ers could pull off a blockbuster move and trade for 2-time Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett, which would give their defense a massive boost.
Here’s what Davenport said about a potential Garrett blockbuster trade before listing the 49ers and Eagles as potential suitors:
Any trade for Garrett would be a whopper—last year’s Micah Parsons deal is probably the starting point in terms of compensation. The Texas A&M product has a no-trade clause, so he would have to sign off on any deal. And a trade before June 1 would blast the Browns for a $40.3 million dead cap hit.
However, it’s not hard to imagine teams being interested in a guy who has won DPOY honors in two of the past three years and just broke the single-season sack record.
There is no reason to assume the 49ers won’t make it to the playoffs based on recent history, but if they acquire Garrett somehow? Another trip to the Super Bowl could be in store to close out the 2026 campaign.
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