Less than 24 hours after 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said he didn’t expect to make a move before the trade deadline, they reportedly sent running back Jeff Wilson Jr. to the Miami Dolphins, where he’ll reunite with former 49ers offensive coordinator and current head coach Mike McDaniel.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweeted the news about an hour before Tuesday’s 1 p.m. PT trade deadline, reporting that the 49ers received a 2023 fifth-round pick as compensation.
During Monday’s conference call with reporters, Shanahan told the media, “I think we're pretty set, but we listen to a call on anybody. We're never not going to listen to people. I'd be surprised if anything goes down, but until the deadline, we're always listening.”
McDaniel is familiar with Wilson, as he served as a key architect of the run game the past five seasons as an assistant with Shanahan. Wilson will also share the backfield with former 49ers running back Raheem Mostert, who has 101 carries for 452 yards this season. As part of a busy deadline day across the league, Miami also traded running back Chase Edmonds in a package to get Broncos linebacker Bradley Chubb.
Wilson’s role has been diminished with the arrival of Christian McCaffrey, who was acquired via trade from the Carolina Panthers two weeks ago and racked up 27 touches to Wilson’s six on Sunday. Wilson stabilized the backfield this season once Elijah Mitchell went down with an MCL injury in Week 1, as his 92 rush attempts and 468 yards were tops on the team this season.
Mitchell could return in Week 10 following this week’s bye, so perhaps the 49ers wanted to recoup some of the draft capital they lost in acquiring McCaffrey. The 49ers needed second-, third- and fourth-round 2023 picks, along with a 2024 fifth-rounder to acquire CMC from the Panthers.
Still, the news might be somewhat shocking to Wilson giving Shanahan’s comments Monday. So ends a four-plus season run for Wilson, who was always a positive presence in the locker room after making the squad as an undrafted rookie in 2018.
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