The 49ers’ edge-rush search has been loud in theory and quiet in practice, but that hasn’t stopped Maxx Crosby from popping back up as a possible answer.
San Francisco has spent the offseason circling the idea of adding a difference-making pass rusher, yet the actual movement has been minimal. For a stretch, the conversation centered on Myles Garrett, Joey Bosa and Crosby as possible targets. Garrett is now a Los Angeles Rams defender, while the Niners and Bosa have reportedly made little to no progress on a deal.
That leaves Crosby as the name that keeps resurfacing. On Friday, Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report went beyond speculation and made the 49ers the team that could pull off the trade in one of his eight bold training camp predictions.
“I think the 49ers have been slow-playing their edge-rusher situation, waiting to see how things develop with Nick Bosa and Mykel Williams as both recover from torn ACLs.
Bosa still has a chance to be back for Week 1, but who knows how much of a factor he can be, and Williams is a huge question mark anyway. That being the case, look for a desperate veteran team in win-now mode to make a splash move for Maxx Crosby this summer.
Of course, the Raiders already showed their hand by agreeing to trade Crosby to the Ravens this offseason before Baltimore backed out of the deal over medical concerns. The soon-to-be 29-year-old is still awesome but may be nearing the back side of his prime, and it makes little sense for a rebuilding team to keep him around on that kind of contract.
What does make sense is trading him to an NFC team that is ready and trying to win now, needs edge help and happens to be located in the same region in which Crosby started his NFL career.”
The idea of a blockbuster usually gets louder the more it’s discussed, but that doesn’t mean it’s close to happening. Still, the 49ers have stayed mostly silent while the edge-rusher market has swirled around them.
General manager John Lynch knows exactly what a player like Crosby would bring to a team chasing a title. With San Francisco in that win-now lane, the possibility is easy to see, even if the deal remains just that for now: a possibility.
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