The San Francisco 49ers made a huge move midway through the 2022 NFL season.
It worked out in a big way, with the ‘Niners recently deemed a ‘clear win’ in their blockbuster trade with the Carolina Panthers.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell did a retrospective on some major deals in a new article out Thursday. That included looking back at the 49ers’ trade to get Christian McCaffrey from the Panthers.
CMC came to San Francisco for four draft picks.
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The Panthers turned one selection into edge rusher DJ Johnson and then used the rest of the picks as parts of trades to move up for Bryce Young and Jonathon Brooks.
McCaffrey had missed most of the previous two seasons due to injury.
“McCaffrey was a perfect fit in San Francisco, where he transformed a 49ers offense that was struggling with backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo,” Barnwell writes. “After losing to the Chiefs in McCaffrey’s first game with the team, the 49ers proceeded to win 11 consecutive games, even after losing Garoppolo to injury and turning to third-stringer Brock Purdy. That season ended in the NFC Championship Game. McCaffrey then won Offensive Player of the Year in 2023, racking up more than 2,000 yards from scrimmage while leading the 49ers to the Super Bowl.”
The Panthers haven’t really rebounded from the deal, although it’s not clear keeping McCaffrey would’ve jumpstarted the franchise, either.
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“The Panthers didn’t make much of their picks,” Barnwell writes. “They packaged two of them to move up for Johnson, who has one half-sack in three seasons. The second-rounder went to the Bears in the ill-fated move up for Young, and the 2024 pick was involved in the Brian Burns trade. That eventually became part of the Rams’ move up for Braden Fiske, with the Panthers trading down and adding Brooks, who has battled knee injuries during his brief pro career.”
This season, McCaffrey is somehow staying healthy while the rest of the 49ers crumble around him.
After an injury-plagued 2024, CMC looks like himself this season, making the trade age even better.
