The San Francisco 49ers had their eyes opened on Sunday as they lost an ugly game to the Houston Texans 26-15. The team needs help on defense in a big way, and a gruesome injury for the New York Giants could open the door for that.
Running back Cam Skattebo suffered a brutal ankle injury on Sunday as the Giants took on the Philadelphia Eagles. He is done for the year, which is an absolute shame after he got off to such a hot start and was looking like a breakout rookie.
Skattebo was making the Niners look fairly foolish for not taking him in the NFL Draft last April because he seemed like a perfect complement (and potentially even a successor) to Christian McCaffrey in San Francisco's backfield, but that is not how things shook out.
Skattebo and New York's young quarterback, Jaxson Dart, made some people believe in New York as the team took down the Eagles a few weeks ago and was stringing some strong games together. Now, after the Skattebo injury and a loss on Sunday that has dropped the Giants to 2-6, they may be in a position to sell rather than buy.
That could open the door for the 49ers to make a trade for edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux.
The University of Oregon product is having a solid season for the Giants with 2.5 sacks and nine quarterback hits in eight games. In 2023, he had 11.5 sacks, so he is a guy who has proven he can get to the quarterback.
49ers can call Giants about potential mutually beneficial trade
San Francisco is in desperate need of a pass-rusher. After losing Nick Bosa for the season with an ACL tear and Bryce Huff with a hamstring issue that made him miss the game against Houston, the defense has struggled to put any sort of consistent pressure on the opposing quarterback.
Coordinator Robert Saleh has been creative and has tried bringing pressure with linebackers and cornerbacks, but it clearly has not been enough.
The 49ers need to add to their porous defensive line, and Thibodeaux would make a ton of sense. While a trade for him could potentially include players from the Niners, the Giants would probably only agree to a deal if there was decent draft capital involved. Maybe a second- or third-round pick would have to be included in a deal to get it done.
General manager John Lynch may not want to give up that much, but he's seeing what everyone else is seeing with the team's defense.
If the Niners are to have any shot at the playoffs this season, they need to make a big move, and the injury to Skattebo may put the Giants in a position to sell.