Should the 49ers make a run at Christian McCaffrey in a trade? Not so fast, says longtime NFL Insider Peter King.
King joined 95.7 The Game’s “Damon & Ratto” Tuesday to share his thoughts on the possibility of the running back joining the 49ers. Many have assumed that McCaffrey could be on the trading block, after the Carolina Panthers fired coach Matt Rhule following their 37-15 loss to the Niners on Sunday.
King thinks the 49ers are better off without McCaffrey.
“I wouldn’t if I were them,” King told hosts Damon Bruce and Larry Krueger, filling in for Ray Ratto. “The only way I would do it, if it didn’t cost very much and if they weren’t worried very much about the cap implications. Unless the Panthers are going to pick up some of his money – he’s got a lot of money left over in his last three years of his deal. You have to ask yourself, if the Panthers are going to pick up a chunk of his money and you don’t have to worry about things like the workout bonus or the pro-rated bonus, and you’re willing to take on $12 million, $12 million and $12 million over the next three years, then maybe you do it. But I wouldn’t do it for big compensation, that’s for sure.”
As King noted, McCaffrey is due about $36 million from 2023-25. Another risk factor with McCaffrey? His ability to stay healthy.
The 26-year-old is one of the best playmakers in football when healthy, but played in just 10 games combined in 2020-21. He has played in all five contests for the Panthers this season.
Jeff Wilson Jr. has been a steady hand at running back since starter Elijah Mitchell went down in Week 1 with an MCL sprain that’s expected to sideline him for about another month.
Wilson enters the Week 6 action ranking eighth in the NFL with 375 rushing yards, while the team recently promoted Tevin Coleman to the active roster after his two-TD performance Sunday and retained Marlon Mack to the practice squad. 2022 third-round pick Ty Davis-Price also appears to be nearing a return after suffering a high-ankle sprain in Week 2.