The San Francisco 49ers’ teardown through the first two days of free agency has been a sight to behold, but the deluge of cuts hasn’t come for the Niners’ most essential and expensive offensive pieces. Or at least not yet.
The prospect of a bigger, more caustic move came up on ESPN Wednesday morning, following a quick summary of everything the 49ers have done — or rather, not done — since Monday. “Get Up” host Mike Greenberg asked panelist and former NFL cornerback Ryan Clark if trading star running back Christian McCaffrey is something the Niners should consider. The question seemed to surprise Clark a little, but he gave unequivocal support to the general idea.
“I would absolutely trade Christian McCaffrey,” he said. “And I would try to get as much as I could possibly get for him. When you look at what Kyle Shanahan has been able to do, it’s run the football. And I know we thought last year they missed some of things with the versatility of Christian McCaffrey, but when you trade [fullback Kyle] Juszczyk, you let some of that versatility go, you let some of the things you could do formationally go.”
Clark added that getting rid of McCaffrey would allow the Niners to spread his offensive responsibility around to other players, like now-second-year receiver Ricky Pearsall, and get players who are “more available” than the running back was last season in a hypothetical trade. The running back appeared in just four games, a stretch that didn’t begin until Week 10, before suffering a knee injury that took him out for the rest of the season.
Putting the merits of Clark’s argument aside, this move couldn’t just happen at the drop of a hat. If the goal is to maximize cost-cutting this offseason, then the Niners would have to wait until June 1 to make a trade involving the running back. Trading him before then would cost them $8.4 million this season, according to Over the Cap, and $951,000 the next. Trading him after June 1 would save San Francisco $4.4 million this season alone.
A trade would also have to actually materialize, and it would have to be one that’s actually worth what the team is giving up. Domonique Foxworth — a former NFL cornerback and the other “Get Up” panelist during this discussion — questioned the value of dealing the 28-year-old back.
“The other teams actually also know that Christian McCaffrey was injured a bunch last year, and they know the history of the running back position,” he said. “I wouldn’t hate the idea of taking some calls, but I honestly think that he’s probably worth more to you than he is to any other team out there.”
Foxworth wasn’t totally out on the idea of a trade. He noted that if McCaffrey is healthy during the season, his trade value would skyrocket. It’s worth remembering he’s just one year removed from being the league’s Offensive Player of the Year. Still, getting to even a percentage of that level might not happen for seven months or so, and by then, where the 49ers will be in this organizational reset is anyone’s guess.
This won’t be the last time McCaffrey’s name comes up when the Niners consider trimming the fat around their organization. The running back’s salary will only skyrocket from here over the next two seasons — $11.9 million in 2026 and $27.5 million in 2027 — when he’ll be in his 30s, a notable running back production cliff. It’ll also be much cheaper to cut him after this upcoming season if they opt to go that route, which seemed improbable before March’s fire sale. Now? Who knows.
