Haason Reddick's recent decision could make it easier for the San Francisco 49ers to strike a trade
The San Francisco 49ers' desire to add another contract headache to their books is probably low following an offseason dominated by dramas surrounding Brandon Aiyuk and Trent Williams. But news emerged on Tuesday that the New York Jets have given Haason Reddick "a short window" to seek a trade, per The Athletic's Dianna Russini, and […]
The San Francisco 49ers' desire to add another contract headache to their books is probably low following an offseason dominated by dramas surrounding Brandon Aiyuk and Trent Williams.
But news emerged on Tuesday that the New York Jets have given Haason Reddick "a short window" to seek a trade, per The Athletic's Dianna Russini, and it would be a surprise if the 49ers were not at least exploring a move for a player at the heart of the strangest contract stand-off of the year.
Reddick was traded to the Jets in April but has never reported to the team as he seeks a new long-term contract, forfeiting approximately a third of his base salary of $14.25 million this season as a result.
The millions of dollars he has lost led to Reddick being let go by his previous agency CAA Sports. Reddick subsequently hired Drew Rosenhaus as his new agent, a move that could make a trade easier for the 49ers to countenance.
San Francisco has five players on its roster who are represented by Rosenhaus, and two who recently signed contracts with the 49ers.
Rosenhaus negotiated the four-year, $84 million deal defensive tackle Javon Hargrave signed with the 49ers in free agency in 2023. This offseason, he negotiated wide receiver Jauan Jennings' two-year extension.
The 49ers are famously tough negotiators, but the relationship with Rosenhaus and their recent success in getting deals done has the potential to make the process less difficult.
San Francisco has to think about the future, with a long-term deal for quarterback Brock Purdy on the horizon next offseason. The Purdy situation might make it difficult for the 49ers to hang on to key pending free agents at other positions and certainly makes the idea of them giving a 30-year-old edge rusher a long-term deal seem dubious.
But the 49ers are in clear need of some extra pass-rushing support for Nick Bosa, both on the edge and the interior of the defensive line. For a win-now team that has history of pushing its chips to the middle of the table at the trade deadline, Reddick's track record of racking up double-digit sacks in each of the last four seasons may be enough for them to put other concerns to one side.
Rosenhaus has reportedly been reaching out to teams about Reddick over the last 12 hours. Given their need and their recent history with Rosenhaus, the 49ers appear likely to have been on the list of phone calls made.
49ers are a top-five team that must find a way to remove albatross hindering Super Bowl hopes
It continues to drag them down.
