Written By Mauricio Segura // Image Created By: The Golden Bay Times Graphics Dept.
NOV 10, 2025
The San Francisco 49ers sat tight at the 2025 NFL trade deadline, and that decision has stirred up frustration both inside the locker room and among the fan base. Despite a 6-3 start and a defense battered by injuries, the team chose not to go big on a blockbuster trade. Some players aren’t thrilled.
Here’s the breakdown: the Niners did make a modest move, acquiring defensive lineman Keion White from the New England Patriots. But they passed on deeper deals for high-impact rushers like Trey Hendrickson of the Bengals or Jermaine Johnson II of the Jets that many expected them to pursue.
Why the silence? Team leadership argues that the asking price was just too steep. General Manager John Lynch explained that the organization wasn’t going to overpay for a one-year rental or give up future flexibility for short-term gain. “We weren’t going to get fleeced,” he said. Head coach Kyle Shanahan added that they looked hard, as they do every year, but didn’t find a deal that made sense for this year and beyond.
The injuries stacked up. The urgency to act was fueled by the fact that the Niners’ defense took serious blows: star edge rusher Nick Bosa and linebacker Fred Warner are out for the season, and rookie first-round pick Mykel Williams suffered a torn ACL and meniscus. The pass-rush stats tell the story. The team has only 11 sacks on the season, tying the total of one individual player elsewhere in the league.
Why the frustration? From the inside, some players and coaches believe the roster clearly needed reinforcement. One comment that stood out was that the defense “as currently constituted is a liability against any team with a halfway decent offense.” The game plan may be fine, the coaches may be excellent, but when you’re missing elite players upfront, the margin for error narrows fast.
Fans noticed too. Other contenders in the NFC pulled the trigger. The Dallas Cowboys upgraded their defensive line, and the Philadelphia Eagles added a key piece. Meanwhile, the Niners stayed quiet, which many viewed as a mismatch between ambition and action.
Is this shrewd or short-sighted? There are two ways to look at it. On one hand, the decision to stay put signals long-term thinking, protecting the future by not mortgaging it for a rental who leaves in 13 weeks. On the other hand, when you’re deep in a playoff chase and your defense is falling apart, inaction feels risky. Shanahan and Lynch say they believed their roster still had enough to contend. But a resilient offense can only carry you so far if opponents keep slicing through the front seven.
What it means moving forward. For now, the Niners are betting on internal fixes, returning players, coaching adjustments, and scheme tweaks. They’ll lean on the defenders who are healthy and hope the younger or backup players step up. But make no mistake, every playoff contender will expect the Niners’ pass rush to be productive, and if it isn’t, that decision to sit could be the turning point between making noise and making excuses.
In short, the Niners chose discipline over desperation. Smart? Possibly. Bold? Not so much. The clock’s ticking now, and if they’re going to prove that decision was the right one, they’ll have to back it up on the field.
