The San Francisco 49ers have a knack for making blockbuster trades midseason. The odds are even higher when they have a good team and a “missing piece” to put them over the edge. 2026 carries a certain caveat: the 49ers are injured, but they expect a good majority of their players back. That leads us to wonderwhat piece they would actually need, knowing most of their players aren’t out for the season.
The trade deadline isn’t until November 10, but that won’t stop the speculating. Rather than make
guesses, it seemed like a good time to look back at some of the midseason trades the Shanahan regime made over the years. This won’t be every midseason trade of the 49ers, but it will be a few of the notable ones.
Jimmy Garoppolo
Year Acquired: 2017
From: New England Patriots
Cost: Second-round pick
Final Year on the Roster: 2022
Some have a bit of a revisionist history when it comes to Jimmy Garoppolo’s time with the 49ers. Acts like stepping out of bounds during a scramble or being counted on to throw a boneheaded interception just about every game.
The thing is, Jimmy G was actually seen as the future at one point, and he backed it up. Garoppolo was drafted by the New England Patriots in the second round of the 2014 NFL draft and served as Tom Brady’s backup. It was widely believed Garoppolo’s pick was seen as the heir apparent. In 2016, Garoppolo filled in for a suspended Tom Brady after the Deflategate suspensions and looked very impressive in his 1.5 games until getting injured (this is going to be a running theme). It was only a game and a half, but it was a good game and a half. Things heated up in 2017, with numerous teams like the Cleveland Browns coming up as possible destinations, but the Patriots wouldn’t trade him.
Then on that fateful Halloween day, the 49ers made a move for Garoppolo. Their quarterback room wasn’t impressive, containing Brian Hoyer and a rookie C.J. Beathard—who was starting in place of the ineffective Hoyer. It was almost certain Kyle Shanahan would get then-Washington Commanders quarterback Kirk Cousins the following offseason once the team was done using franchise tags to keep him from leaving the organization. Garoppolo was seen as an alternative if that didn’t happen, and at best a quick rental to see what he could do. A quarterback coming in midseason as a starter is usually a bad idea, especially when Garoppolo is going from the Erhardt-Perkins system the Patriots ran to the West Coast terminology Kyle Shanahan used.
Week 12 sped that up when CJ Beathard got injured in the final minute of a home game against the Seattle Seahawks. The 49ers were done at this point; the score was 24-6, and they just wanted to get out of there with little injuries. In that minute, the possibilities of Garoppolo were put on full display: the perfect QB sneak, the quick release, and some Jimmy G magic: a touchdown as time expired.
The 49ers went to 1-10 following the loss, but didn’t lose another game that season. Despite his inexperience, Garoppolo offered some of the best quarterback play the 49ers had seen in years. He signed a record-breaking deal in the offseason and finally, FINALLY, the quarterback position was figured out. Kirk Cousins was an afterthought, though some stirred the pot, thinking the 49ers might still find a way to get him.
Then in Week 3 of 2018, Garoppolo tore his ACL. The 49ers turned in another losing season. Garoppolo returned in 2019, but something was off—though you didn’t really notice it because the 49ers were delivering a season no one expected, one that had a trip to the Super Bowl waiting for them. With a rookie Deebo Samuel and an acquired Emmanuel Sanders (we’ll get to him), Garoppolo had a powerful offense to work with.
Looking back, you almost want to ask if the 49ers were winning despite Garoppolo. You knew something was up in the NFC Championship Game when Garoppolo threw only eight times. Back then, the simple argument was that the 49ers’ run game was so good there was no reason to throw. Looking back, there might have been a deeper reason. In the Super Bowl, Garoppolo had a chance to win the game, but overthrew Sanders as the 49ers blew a 10-point lead.
While Garoppolo wasn’t a bad quarterback, the way he played in that game, after all the money the 49ers gave him two years earlier, brought a big microscope. It wasn’t an immediate benching, but he was paid to win games like that or at least give a better effort.
Garoppolo battled injuries for the rest of his time with the 49ers. The organization traded three draft picks in 2021 to draft Trey Lance, though Garoppolo was still under contract. It’s all good Garoppolo still started that season, but Lance stepped in when Garoppolo suffered an injury or two. When 2022 training camp began and Garoppolo remained on the roster, everyone knew it was a matter of time before he was off the roster. Moving on was almost a certainty (with him even telling the fans goodbye in the final game of the previous season), but that Trey Lance pick wasn’t looking so hot, so they kept Garoppolo on as the backup.
Lance had an ankle injury in Week 2, and Garoppolo was the starter again. Then Garoppolo got a foot injury, and the 49ers went to their third quarterback. Some kid named Brock Purdy. The Jimmy G saga was officially over following the 2022 season.
If that’s a lot about a single pick, it’s because that’s how exhausting Garoppolo—and the arguments for and against him—was at quarterback. When he started, he looked like the franchise player the 49ers were missing. Unfortunately, after his ACL tear, a statue would have made quicker movements. While he might not have been one of the best quarterbacks in 49ers history, I do think he was one of the most important. That touchdown against Seattle was more than just a garbage-time score. It signaled what was coming with Kyle Shanahan. It would be a few years until the 49ers lucked into Brock Purdy, and until then, Garoppolo made the 49ers competitive. He darn-near won them a Super Bowl.
This is one of those trades that was well worth both the pick and the deal that followed in Garoppolo’s salary. Record-breaking, sure, but the 49ers won with Garoppolo. And they weren’t winning with anyone else under center (despite what some may say).
Emmanuel Sanders
Year Acquired: 2019
From: Denver Broncos
Cost: Third and fourth-round picks
Final Year on the Roster: 2019
The 49ers had just about everything. They had a filthy defense helmed by Nick Bosa and DeForest Buckner; they had a decent running game with Matt Breida (and later Raheem Mostert); the wide receivers were a bit iffy. Dante Pettis was a bit of a reach, Kendrick Bourne was more a third-down receiver, and Marquise Goodwin was fast, but his getting injured was a matter of “when.”
Enter Sanders. While he debuted against the Carolina Panthers and was mostly quiet, his second game against the Arizona Cardinals showed you this was a good pickup: 112 yards receiving, a touchdown, and immediate rapport with Garoppolo. Sanders gave the wide receiver group a shot in the arm and had instant trust from the quarterback. Unfortunately, while Sanders earned his quarterback’s trust, the quarterback failed to connect on a crucial deep pass that could have altered the NFL as we know it.
Sanders left in the offseason and signed with the New Orleans Saints. A classic definition of a “rental,” the 49ers’ passing game would have had deeper issues in 2019 without him.
Christian McCaffrey
Year Acquired: 2022
From: Carolina Panthers
Cost: Second, third, and fourth-round pick
Final Year on the Roster: Still on the team
After the 49ers had a brutal loss to the Atlanta Falcons, Kyle Shanahan decided to change up the running backs and made a trade with the Panthers for one of, if not the best, running backs in the league at that time. Rumors suggested the Los Angeles Rams were involved, but Shanahan won out.
At first, the trade seemed a bit unnecessary. Some idiot on X said that Christian McCaffrey didn’t help the 49ers wide receivers catch passes, among other things. McCaffrey quickly made himself the focal point of the 49ers offense, so much that some wanted Shanahan to stop giving McCaffrey so many carries.
McCaffrey debuted against the Kansas City Chiefs, but given his inexperience in the offense and how the game was just days after the trade, there wasn’t much. The next game against the Los Angeles Rams? Oh man. McCaffrey became the first 49ers running back to have a passing, rushing, and receiving touchdown in the same game.
It just kept getting nuts from there. The 49ers became a different team in almost overnight. That passing touchdown may have been what gave the 49ers the decision to slot McCaffrey in at quarterback in the NFC Championship Game. If you remember, Brock Purdy tore his elbow, and backup Josh Johnson left with a concussion. McCaffrey started taking snaps in a nightmare of a game. You could see him on the bench after every series, where they were trying to tell him how to run the position and how to read a wristband.
Father Time is unbeaten, and McCaffrey is no exception, but even now the 49ers are a much different team without him. Limiting his touches by finding a good understudy in Kaelon Black certainly helps keep him fresh, and he’s still a threat anytime he touches the ball.
When the trade broke, many thought the 49ers were fleeced. This was a team without a first-round pick after the Trey Lance debacle; now they are giving up seconds and thirds too? Are they even going to pick? As time went on, it was clear the 49ers got him in exchange for a Betamax player.
Chase Young
Year Acquired: 2023
From: Washington Commanders
Cost: Third-round pick
Final Year on the Roster: 2023
Another rental, and not a bad flyer. Young had a strong college career at Ohio State, playing alongside Nick Bosa on the same defensive line. His professional career was far less successful. The 49ers gave up a third-round pick to get Young from the Commanders, thinking that if he left in free agency after the season, they’d get their third-round pick back via compensatory picks.
On the 49ers? It was interesting at first. Young looked like a different player, reunited with Bosa, when the 49ers played the Jacksonville Jaguars. Unfortunately, he had only 2.5 sacks with the team. Things got worse when you saw him taking plays off in the NFC Championship Game (something that might be more attributed to then-defensive coordinator Steve Wilks) and not having the hustle you might expect from someone.
Young went to the Saints in the offseason. He’s having a pretty good 2026 with four sacks and a fumble recovery. Unfortunately, his effort in the postseason for the 49ers made you know he wouldn’t be back in red and gold.
Keion White
Year Acquired: 2025
From: New England Patriots
Cost: Sixth-round pick
Final Year on the Roster: Still on team
So why are we bringing up White here? He didn’t arrive shouldering expectations that he could change the team. Well, yes, but he was a terrific development pick. At least in the short time he’s been in Santa Clara. He wasn’t doing much in New England, fighting injuries and even being a healthy scratch.
White came to the 49ers shortly after a knee injury put Nick Bosa out for the season. The only player they could rely on was Sam Okuayinonu and not much else. While the pass rush as a whole was non-existent, even with White’s presence, 2026 has been impressive.
The 49ers are again without Nick Bosa, but White still had a hand in that five-sack defensive performance against the Seattle Seahawks last week. He’s at three sacks for the year, and his career record is five. Keep in mind this is done while the defensive line has been snakebit with injuries. Mykel Williams’ return likely helped in the Seattle game, and if White keeps improving, the 49ers got a steal with their sixth-round pick and the development.
Well, that’s assuming that if he continues to boil, the 49ers find a way to keep him into 2027; this is the last year of his contract (D’oh!).
