The San Francisco 49ers head into Sunday night’s matchup against the Dallas Cowboys at 4-0 on the season and looking like one of the top Super Bowl contenders in the NFL.
This didn’t stop always active general manager John Lynch from adding more talent to the mix on the cheap.
San Francisco announced Friday afternoon that it has acquired veteran pass rusher Randy Gregory from the Denver Broncos. The details of said trade suggests that it’s a low-risk, high-reward proposition for the 49ers. They gave up a sixth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, receiving Gregory and a seventh-round selection in the process.
Financially, the 49ers are paying only $840,000 of Gregory’s contract for the remainder of the season. That’s the veteran minimum in the NFL.
Gregory, 30, had signed a whopping five-year, $70 million contract with Denver ahead of the 2022 season. He has no more guaranteed money remaining on his contract, meaning that the 49ers can simply release Gregory or restructure his deal following the 2023 season.
Denver was reportedly set to release the former second-round pick from Nebraska before finding a trade partner in the 49ers. He did not pan out with the Broncos, recording just three sacks in 10 games with the team.
What Randy Gregory Provides The San Francisco 49ers
It’s all about depth out on the edge opposite the recently extended Nick Bosa. Second-year player Drake Jackson has shared those duties with free-agent signing Clelin Ferrell thus far this season. Jackson recorded three sacks in San Francisco’s season-opening win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, but has been largely quiet since.
San Francisco did release veteran pass rusher Kerry Hyder Jr. to make room for Gregory on the 53-man roster. Though, there is a chance he’ll re-sign to the practice squad. Head coach Kyle Shanahan talked about the acquisition of Gregory during his weekly press conference on Friday. Among other things, Shanahan talked about what he sees in Gregory.
“Just playing against him over our career, two years ago when we played him up there in Dallas, he was as good of a rusher as we’d gone against, Shanahan said. “And just the fact that we had an opportunity that he was available, being able to add a guy like that, we feel he’ll make our team better and so we didn’t hesitate to do it.”
A second-round pick of the Cowboys out of Nebraska back in 2015, Gregory has shown flashes. Back in 2018, he recorded 15 quarterback hits and six sacks. His final season with the Cowboys back in 2021 saw Gregory register 17 quarterback hits and six sacks.
In limited action with the Broncos last season, Gregory ranked 15th among NFL edge rushers in pass-rush win rate.
With opposing offensive lines having to focus on double teaming Bosa on the other side, Gregory should be given ample opportunities to make his impact known. The addition of Pro Bowl defensive tackle Javon Hargrave in free agency this past spring adds another layer to that.
San Francisco 49ers Might Not Be Done Before Oct. 31 NFL Trade Deadline
Given the cheap nature of Gregory’s acquisition, it will have no impact on what Lynch and Co. do before the NFL trade deadline later this month.
San Francisco still has an estimated 11 picks in the 2024 NFL Draft, including three in the third and two more in the fourth.
The 49ers also have a league-high $43.39 million in cap room. As Lynch showed on Friday and with the Christian McCaffrey acquisition a year ago this month, he’s not afraid to hit the NFL trade market.
Despite San Francisco’s status as one of the best teams in the NFL, there are some question marks on this roster. That includes the cornerback position behind Charvarius Ward and the right tackle spot.
If the 49ers deem that one of these areas must be addressed, something will likely happen ahead of the deadline. Trading for Gregory does nothing to change this given the details listed above.
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