The space between the start of the new league year, free agency and the NFL Draft is a silly time.
There are loads of mock drafts and insider reporting, all of which are built on various levels of information and understanding of what teams are going to do. Niner Noise is just as guilty, to be fair, but there is intrigue behind all the speculation and conjecture.
Enter ESPN's Bill Barnwell, who is well-known as an outside-the-box thinker when it comes to this time of the year, and his annual all-trades mock draft.
The concept is simple enough: Every pick has to be traded, although the picks don't have to be dependent on one another (think of it as a mock draft multiverse). In other words, while each team must deal its slotted pick, it doesn't mean that team can't reappear in another trade elsewhere in the exercise.
Barnwell, then, has three trades involving the San Francisco 49ers.
One is their trade out of No. 11 overall, which is a pretty modest move with the Miami Dolphins:
"49ers get: 1-13, Edge Jaelan Phillips
Dolphins get: 1-11, 4-113"
Bill Barnwell
In reality, this isn't a bad move for the Niners, since they'd probably want to stack up more draft picks to allow them to move around the board as they see fit. And while they lose a fourth-round pick in the process, they also add a player, an edge rusher in Phillips who could help with their defensive line depth.
The last trade is part of the move for the Washington Commanders, who sit at No. 29 overall:
"Commanders get: 2-43, 3-100, 2026 fifth-round pick
49ers get: 1-29"
Bill Barnwell
Barnwell's thought process -- essentially the 49ers have a lot of draft picks they could use and would benefit from a second player with a fifth-year option -- is accurate, and the price isn't awful, depending on who the target would be.
But the biggest of all these trades that Barnwell brings the 49ers into includes the New England Patriots, a potentially embattled wide receiver, and a new superstar for the Niners.
ESPN's wild trade proposal would send 49ers fans into a frenzy
The trade is as follows:
"Patriots get: 1-11, WR Brandon Aiyuk
49ers get: 1-4, G Cole Strange"
Bill Barnwell
The biggest element of this move, however, is whom the 49ers might be targeting with such a move: Colorado wide receiver/cornerback and Heisman trophy winner Travis Hunter.
The logic is fairly sound as well. Aiyuk was the discussion of trade talks with New England last offseason but reportedly nixed the deal because he didn't want to play for the Patriots, something that may have changed given the success of Drake Maye at quarterback last year.
But if the relationship with the Niners and Aiyuk can't be mended, then why not ship him out to Boston, recoup a former first-round offensive lineman who may benefit from a change of scenery, and then take one of the most exciting prospects in the draft with the No. 4 overall pick, Hunter?
Losing Aiyuk would hurt, but he's also likely to miss a good chunk of the start of the year anyway, and, as Barnwell notes, the 49ers "have enough playmakers on offense with Jauan Jennings, Ricky Pearsall, George Kittle and Christian McCaffrey."
And, of course, Hunter would add a dimension on both sides of the ball, stepping in as an immediate No. 2 cornerback next to Deommodore Lenoir and serving as a part-time offensive weapon in Kyle Shanahan's offense.
It seems unlikely that Aiyuk will be moved this offseason, but of all the trade proposals, this one certainly makes the most sense and offers the most potential excitement for the 49ers and their fans.
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