San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch confirmed that he’d been having productive conversations about pass rushers ahead of the November trade deadline.

One report surfaced on Saturday that the Niners would call to gauge the availability of Cincinnati Bengals edge rusher Trey Hendrickson, who turns 31 in December. That’s a player that would cost the 49ers at least a third-round pick. Hendrickson does not seem like the type of player the 49ers would acquire midseason.

According to a report by Easton Butler that was confirmed by SB Nation’s ACME Packing’s Justis Mosqueda, the 49ers are one of two teams...

The past week and a half, I’ve read way too much about a quarterback “controversy”. That conversation is about as useless as the police officer pulling over a Waymo during a DUI stop. The real conversation worth having is the trade conversation: do the 49ers change course on their “reload” year and cash in some chips for a star pass rusher?

The whole idea of a “reload” year is that you take gambles on young guys with cheap contracts. Across Dee Winters, Mykel Williams, Renardo Green, Upton Stout, and Alfred Collins, the 49ers went into the season with total question...

Schefter: 49ers’ Jones, Jennings expected to play vs. Bucs; Pearsall, Purdy updates
“Jones has been managing knee and oblique injuries, while Jennings has been recovering from ankle and rib issues. Their availability gives the 49ers’ offense a much-needed boost as they look to improve on their 4-1 record.”

49ers announce roster moves ahead of clash with Buccaneers
“Mustapha is back for his first game of the season after recovering from a knee injury he sustained in San Francisco’s final game of the 2024 season. The second-year player is the 49ers’ best safety, starting 12 games as a rookie. Mustapha had...

The San Francisco 49ers officially activated safety Malik Mustapha from the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform List. Mustapha was listed as questionable on the final injury report, but is now expected to make his season debut.

Mustapha has the reputation as a premier run defender, but that undersells how impressive he was in coverage as a rookie. Mustapha only allowed 39 yards in coverage all season. Mustapha got his hands on nearly as many passes on defense (3) as receptions he allowed (4). Regardless of which safety comes off the field, the 49ers are getting back one of their best defensive...

Injuries have been the Achilles heel for the San Francisco 49ers in 2025, but they got some major news in a positive way this week: safety Malik Mustapha is back and ready to return.

Mustapha, who tore his ACL in the season finale last season, had his practice window opened this week, and head coach Kyle Shanahan said he will play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this weekend.

It was Mustapha’s second ACL tear to the same knee, so he was expected to have a lengthy recovery. But, after one week of practice, he has impressed the coaching staff and...

For years, the San Francisco 49ers have looked for a complement to George Kittle.

After his breakout season in 2018, they tried Ross Dwelley as the No. 2 option. Then, they brought in Jordan Reed in 2020 after Kittle got hurt, while also drafting Charlie Woerner.

After Woerner departed last offseason, they signed Eric Saubert to a one-year deal. Yet, none of those moves seemed to stick, as San Francisco didn’t find the complement they wanted, both as a blocker and as a pass-catcher.

San Francisco absolutely needs a quality blocker from that TE2 role, which is what Woerner was...

In case you haven’t followed the latest in college football, the North Carolina Tar Heels and head coach Bill Belichick are already crafting joint statements after his underwhelming start in Chapel Hill. With a 2-3 record, most recently a 38-10 loss at the hands of Clemson, calling it “underwhelming” is probably a bit generous.

That situation was going to work wonders for the coach and the program — said no one ever

In any case, the joint statements supporting the head coach and program for damage control came, and here we are. On Jim Rome’s After Hour program, Adam Rank...

The 49ers are clearly in the market for a pass rusher in the wake of Nick Bosa’s season-ending torn ACL, and one NFL insider believes they will at least make an enquiry about a blockbuster trade to try to fill the void.

San Francisco has just six sacks on the season, tied for the second-fewest in the NFL, with two of them having come from Bosa. Bryce Huff recorded his third of the season against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 5, while rookie corner Upton Stout has one.

In addition, the 49ers rank second-last in the NFL in pressure...

The 49ers openly acknowledge that, on tape and by every typical measure you would normally look at, their run game is not working in any way close to their usual standard

San Francisco does not have a rushing touchdown this season and is averaging just 3.1 yards per rush, tied with the Bengals for the worst mark in the NFL.

Yet the 49ers are persisting with the ground game, with their 139 rush attempts ranking 10th in the league. That is an average of 27.8 attempts per game.

The 49ers had 33 rush attempts in Week 5, netting just 74...

We’re back with a second 49ers mailbag. We still don’t know what we are going to call this segment that is replacing Punterville articles in importance, but we have a few suggestions. I’m leaning on “Ask Pato” as my contribution for naming conventions. Here are some others:

• Fool’s Gold Mailbag
• Panning for Fool’s Gold
• Fool’s Gold Pan
• Fool’s Gold Mine
• The Golden Fool Mailbag

If we’re really going to do this regularly, and do something on fool’s gold. Or just something about the fool writing this, I’d also recommend considering a title containing “Iron...

The San Francisco 49ers will be without quarterback Brock Purdy this Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Mac Jones is officially questionable, although head coach Kyle Shanahan made it sound like Jones would start.

Here’s what Shanahan said when asked if he’d made up his mind about Sunday’s starter: “I pretty much already have, but you’ve got to put it that way, if there’s any doubt at all.”

Rookie seventh-round quarterback Kurtis Rourke is getting close to returning to practice, according to Shanahan: “We should open his window soon. It’s getting real close to it. Probably a few weeks away....

The San Francisco 49ers hit the highway on Sunday to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Head coach Todd Bowles ruled out a pair of cornerbacks, two of Baker Mayfield’s favorite targets, and their big-play running back:

WR Mike Evans
WR Chris Godwin
RB Bucky Irving
CB Zyon McCollum
CB Benjamin Morrison

Iriving didn’t practice all week. He’s battling multiple injuries and was last seen in a walking boot.

Evans will miss his third game in a row with a hamstring injury. Godwin suffered a fibula injury against the Seattle Seahawks last week. He missed the first three games after...