Are the 49ers in Line to Make a Deadline Trade?
The 2014 NFL trading deadline will strike at 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, October 28, and the San Francisco 49ers are one such team that has been reported as being interested in making some moves at the final moment.
News of such interest came from a report generated by ESPN's Adam Schefter on October 26, citing multiple sources in his analysis.
Schefter's report, and the subsequent speculation, does provide an interesting scenario in which the 49ers deal one, or more, of their players to both free up roster space and acquire a late-round draft pick in return.
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So is this a possibility?
Well, sure. Why wouldn't it be? The 49ers have shown a capability to trade off excess in return for some late draft picks. Names like Parys Haralson and Cam Johnson ring bells in years prior.
But these were transactions that took place at the tail end of the preseason over a year ago. Deadline deals are not exactly something common for San Francisco.
Yet, let us explore scenarios in which the 49ers might explore trade possibilities. As stated previously, San Francisco is interested in making some room on its 53-man roster. A trade, or two, would fit right into the 49ers' best hopes moving forward.
The Context
If the 49ers were merely expecting to get some players back who were already listed on the team's 53-man roster, speculation surrounding any trade would likely be at a minimum.
But San Francisco is expected to get additional reinforcements during the second half—a considerable amount of whom do not comprise the 53 players listed.
Four of these players draw our interest—linebackers Aldon Smith and NaVorro Bowman, nose tackle Glenn Dorsey and running back Marcus Lattimore.
Smith is the lone player not returning from injury. His NFL-mandated nine-game suspension could possibly end sooner than expected, as previously reported by Mike Florio of NBC Sports' Pro Football Talk.
This, and the other eventual returns listed above, force the 49ers' hand when it comes to formulating their roster in the second half. Each player will unquestionably get a roster spot once healthy. Lattimore might be the lone exception, but with San Francisco currently carrying only two running backs, it's likely he'll get a nod at some point soon.
Lattimore is scheduled to practice with the team on Wednesday, per Matt Barrows of The Sacramento Bee. The 49ers will then have a 21-day window in which to evaluate the second-year pro and determine whether or not they will opt to give him a roster spot.
Assuming all four of these players work their respective ways onto the 53-man roster, which other guys will the 49ers be forced to move?
This is where a trade scenario makes sense. General manager Trent Baalke and the 49ers front office would much prefer to get something in return for a player rather than simply waiving him and receiving nothing in return.
But for this to happen, there would have to be some mutual interest out there.
The Possibilities
Smith's return creates perhaps the most intriguing possibility when it comes to the movement of a player at the deadline.
The chief name on San Francisco's incumbent roster would be second-year pro linebacker Corey Lemonier.
Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area suggests that Lemonier could draw some interest in a deadline deal.
Lemonier was tabbed as the 49ers' primary pass-rushing outside linebacker at the start of the season, concurrently acting in this role while Smith served his suspension. But a slow start resulted in Lemonier losing his job to rookie linebacker Aaron Lynch on pass-rushing formations.
Over one-and-a-half seasons, Lemonier has just 16 tackles and one sack—certainly not numbers that inspired a lot of confidence out of the third-round draft choice.
As Maiocco points out, Lemonier is now buried behind Lynch, Dan Skuta and Ahmad Brooks. The return of Smith pushes Lemonier down one more slot, all but making him expendable on San Francisco's roster.
Chris Biderman of Scout.com lists Lemonier as the likeliest of trade candidates to net a decent draft pick in exchange. In spite of the slow start, Biderman suggests that teams could very well be interested in the 22-year-old's talents and upside—elements that perhaps have yet to be seen.
Biderman suggests a mid-round pick in exchange for Lemonier. This could be a little high, especially considering that Lemonier has yet to substantially prove himself at the NFL level. Deadline deals do not fly around at the NFL level like they can in Major League Baseball or the National Hockey League at their respective deadlines.
Additionally, the movement of mid-level picks is also rare at the deadline. If Lemonier were moved, we should probably expect nothing higher than a fifth- or a sixth-round pick in return.
But Lemonier isn't the only possibility.
According to both Barrows and Maiocco, San Francisco has substantial depth along the defensive line—depth that will be reinforced by the eventual return of Dorsey.
Ian Williams is currently listed as the team's primary starter at the nose tackle position. Second-year pro Quinton Dial is also another possibility, although he has scantly been active. Dorsey adds another piece to the puzzle.
D-linemen Tony Jerod-Eddie and Demarcus Dobbs may also work their ways into trade speculation. Both can play along the line, and both offer special teams flexibility. These attributes increase both Jerod-Eddie and Dobbs' trade value, but it's hard to speculate anything more than a seventh-rounder in return if a team felt an exchange was warranted.
Both backup linemen are in the midst of a contract year and will be free agents this offeseason.
The Likelihood
Head coach Jim Harbaugh stated via Maiocco that he did not expect the 49ers to make any transactions prior to Tuesday's trade deadline.
Could this be a smoke-and-mirrors statement, or should we take Harbaugh's comments as an expectation?
In all likelihood, San Francisco will probably not be able to pull off any deadline deal involving any of the aforementioned players on the team's roster. While it is nice, in theory, to try to acquire something in exchange for a player that may eventually be cut, the reality simply does not suggest this as a strong possibility.
Lemonier's struggles in his second year have assuredly thwarted any significant interest, especially in a team that would be willing to send off a coveted draft pick. Assuming a team would want to part ways with picks for players like Jerod-Eddie and Dobbs is just as unlikely.
It's also possible that some of, or all, these players wind up being waived by the 49ers at some point following the deadline.
Why pay for something when you can get it for free a week, or so, later?
What is known is this—San Francisco will have some tough questions in determining what roster moves to make as Smith, Bowman, Dorsey and Lattimore make their respective routes back to the team. These decisions will need to be made without sacrificing the necessary elements that present the team with the best chance to win moving forward.
It certainly is not an easy process.
All statistics, records and accolades courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com unless otherwise indicated.
Peter Panacy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report, covering the San Francisco 49ers. Be sure to check out his entire archive on 49ers news, insight and analysis.
Follow him @PeterPanacy on Twitter.
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