49ers Setting Themselves up for Potential Big Move After DeForest Buckner Trade
By Mark Powell
In a surprising move around the NFL, the NFC champion San Francisco 49ers opted to shake up their defensive line and deal an All-Pro defensive tackle to the AFC South.
DeForest Buckner, one of the best overall defensive lineman in the NFL, is heading to the Indianapolis Colts in exchange for a first-round pick. On first look, such a decision makes no sense, but the corresponding moves leading up to dealing Buckner paint a more detailed picture.
Trade AND deal: Colts trade first-round pick (13th overall) to 49ers for All-Pro DT DeForest Buckner, who already has agreed to a massive contract that pays him $21 million a year and makes him the second-highest paid DT in NFL history behind only Aaron Donald, sources tell ESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 16, 2020
Buckner was on the final year of his deal with the 49ers, which was fully guaranteed at over $12 million. While San Francisco initially had interest in bringing back Buckner long-term, they spent a great deal of their available money on fellow defensive lineman Arik Armstead, who signed a five-year, $85 million extension. Buckner, meanwhile, clearly got his money's worth in the end, signing a record-breaking contract with the Colts that the 49ers could not afford.
By obtaining a first-round pick and increasing their cap space from just $7 million to a nearly $20 million, the 49ers have extra draft capital and the flexibility to have a productive offseason.
After today’s trade for the No. 13 overall pick, the 49ers now have two first-round picks.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 16, 2020
Without second-, third-, and fourth-round picks, the 49ers are likely to shop one of their first-round picks to pick up more draft compensation.
The 49ers have a decision to make: Should they hold onto their extra first-rounder, or deal it for an impact player (perhaps for an available wideout such as Odell Beckham, Jr. or Stefon Diggs) or picks given the deep draft pool at their positions of need? Jimmy Garoppolo, for one, ought to be thrilled with such a possibility.
While featuring a defensive line with both Buckner and Armstead was appetizing, it wasn't conceivable for a team which, like it or not, fell short of their ultimate goal as currently constructed.