Niners Nation
The 49ers have already made one trade they hope will improve a struggling defensive line with the acquisition of Keion White from the New England Patriots, but the consensus is they will try to strike another deal before Tuesday’s deadline.
It is expected the defensive front will continue to be the focus for San Francisco. White brings useful positional flexibility in being able to operate inside and out, but the 49ers would greatly benefit from adding another pure edge rusher in the absence of Nick Bosa.
Trey Hendrickson reportedly remains on the 49ers’ radar even as the Cincinnati Bengals seemingly remain steadfast in their refusal to move him.
There are several other names who could be potential targets for San Francisco but, asked about the possibility of adding another player before the deadline, John Lynch didn’t commit to it as a certainty.
He told KNBR on Thursday: “I’ll never say never because we still have some time left on this deadline. We like whoever we trade for to be here for more than just the end of this year. We also want to keep our draft, we don’t want to eat into that too much but also wanted to bolster our team for this year.”
Lynch’s comments echo the sentiments consistently expressed by head coach Kyle Shanahan. The 49ers want to improve their team, but they won’t make moves strictly for this year, and they won’t make moves that compromise their ability to refresh the roster in the draft.
White ticked both boxes in that regard. He is under contract for 2026, and the cost was minimal, with the 49ers and Patriots swapping late-round picks.
Yet his remarks are clearly also a case of Lynch keeping his cards close to his chest. He isn’t going to reveal whether the Niners are close to an additional trade, but all the noises to this point have suggested they are pushing to land another player who can affect the quarterback.
Their success in doing so depends on several external factors, yet if Lynch can find another solution that allows them to keep onto most of their 2026 draft capital, the 49ers will be in a decent spot to address other needs with their remaining picks.
