What ‘swing for the fences’ move should the 49ers make this offseason?

Earlier in the week, ESPN’s Adam Schefter posted on Twitter, “With teams considering the upcoming free-agent and draft classes to be subpar, there could be an uptick in trade activity this offseason.”

Popular names in the free agent class include 32-year-old Trey Hendrickson, 33-year-old Mike Evans, 33-year-old All-Pro Kevin Byard, and the rights to overpay Tyler Linderbaum, Alec Pierce, Jaelan Phillips, Kyle Pitts, Odafe Oweh, and Kenneth Walker.

The draft is deep, and you will be able to find starters in the third round, but they will be of the mid-tier variety. If you are looking for a superstar, you’re going to need to trade for one.

The same is true for a quarterback, which bodes well for the San Francisco 49ers. A team might be willing to part ways with a second or third round pick for a year of an inexpensive Mac Jones. The Niners could turn around and use that pick in a deal for a potential star.

Speaking of trade value, the 49ers publicly saying they had buyer’s remorse a year after paying Brandon Aiyuk tanked what was probably a second-round pick in 2024 to a conditional pick—and that’s if a team really wants Aiyuk. Realistically, Aiyuk is a cut candidate.

There are some obvious trade candidates we’ve discussed, like Maxx Crosby. Adding him would be the definition of a “swing for the fences” move. The same is true for A.J. Brown, who has waffled about wanting to play elsewhere. The Eagles would need to be willing to incur a $43 million dead cap hit if they move Brown before June 1.

The 49ers have options; the question is what they’re willing to give up. One buy-low option would be Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. The 2024 first-round pick saw his target share drop nearly six percent under a new coaching staff, which was fourth on the team. The new regime has no ties to Thomas Jr. and has proven it can win without featuring him.

Looking back at these wide receiver rankings, the fear was that Thomas Jr. wasn’t as far along as his counterparts as a pure route runner and that his lack of precision would cost him in the NFL. That wasn’t the case as a rookie when he had 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns. ESPN’s wide receiver metric ranks Thomas Jr. 160th out of 160, despite a 707-yard season. Thomas Jr. would check multiple boxes for the 49ers. He’s young, 6’3”, fast, and still has multiple years left on his rookie deal.

If I’m John Lynch, my “swing for the fences” move would be resetting the wide receiver room. I sweeten the pot for the Eagles and include Ricky Pearsall in the A.J. Brown deal. That allows me to trade only a third-round pick, since I’m doing you a favor by trading away a rookie contract and a former first-rounder.

This upcoming season is technically the first year of Brown’s new contract. It’s a hefty $29 million guaranteed in 2026, but there are no other guarantees in his salary after that. Brown is a legitimate No. 1. Assuming Aiyuk is cut, the 49ers do not have a No. 1 on their roster.

With the pick netted in the hypothetical Mac Jones trade, we’ve decided that two more years of Brian Thomas Jr. makes more sense than guessing correctly on a wide receiver in this draft, so another pick is going for a high upside, big-bodied wideout. After careful consideration and watching all of the receivers in the upcoming draft, the front office believes Thomas Jr. is a better fit compared to what’s in the draft pool, which gives up their late first-rounder while getting back a pick in return. It’s a deal Jacksonville makes since they do not have a first-rounder.

So, San Francisco can recoup a pick they gave up when they acquired Brown, and walk away with two big, fast wide receivers who will thrive in Kyle Shanahan’s offense. The team no longer has a first-round pick, but has multiple Day 2 picks and can fill out the depth on its roster at key positions, all while upgrading at wide receiver.

Your turn. Scroll down below in the comments and map out a “swing for the fences” scenario where the 49ers make a massive move or two this offseason.