Sportsnaut
A new NFL trade report has offered up a pair of intriguing targets for the San Francisco 49ers to fill the pass-rushing void left by Nick Bosa.
Despite dealing with a slew of injuries, the 49ers are 3-0 to start the 2025 NFL season. They have been without starting QB Brock Purdy for the last two games. Jauan Jennings missed their game in Week 3, and Brandon Aiyuk has yet to take a snap as he continues to recover from an ACL tear. However, they took a massive injury hit this week.
The 49ers’ defense has played well this season and has led their unbeaten start. Unfortunately, in their win on Sunday, star EDGE rusher Nick Bosa tore his ACL for a second time and will miss the regular season. If San Francisco really wants to make some noise in the playoffs, they’ll need to find impact players who can help fill the void.
On Wednesday, ESPN reporters Dan Graziano and Jeremy Fowler took a look at which players could be up for grabs before November’s NFL trade deadline, including pass-rushing options that might appeal to the ‘9ers.
“Another potentially available Dolphin I have my eye on is edge rusher Jaelan Phillips, a 2021 first-round pick who’s in the final year of his contract,” Graziano wrote. “If Miami decides to start moving players, Phillips is probably one of their more popular potential trade options.”
Fowler agreed with Phillips being on the block and his upside despite a lengthy injury history. However, he also suggested two other names that could be available to the 49ers. One realistic, and one that they are very unlikely to target.
“Phillips has massive upside despite his injury history. He would fit in seamlessly somewhere, and a pass rusher is always a focus for teams,” he wrote. “To that end, could a team pry Trey Hendrickson out of Cincinnati? On a smaller scale, Azeez Ojulari is a healthy scratch right now in Philly.”
Hendrickson will be out of the 49ers’ price range if the Bengals do make him available before Nov. 4. However, the other two are realistic options over the next few weeks.
Phillips was the 18th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Over his first three seasons, he posted 22 sacks, including 6.5 in just eight games two seasons ago. However, injuries have completely derailed his career over the last three years.
Ojulari is a rock-solid pass rusher and could be had for an affordable price. He peaked with eight sacks in his rookie season in 2021 and had six in 11 starts last season.
More must-reads:
