The San Francisco 49ers turned their roster younger offseason, taking on plenty of dead money in the process. Several departed veterans have been replaced by draft picks, and other young players are lined up for bigger roles this season.
The Niners have made a noteworthy addition as the calendar flipped to June, acquiring edge rusher Bryce Huff from the Philadelphia Eagles for a Day 3 pick in 2026. Huff has good history under 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, and he's easily a better scheme fit in San Francisco than he was in Philadelphia.
When news of the Huff trade surfaced, it was automatically bad news for the one overpaid and underachieving veteran San Francisco has left on defense. Cutting that veteran may simply come down toproper timing, now that June 1 has come and gone, but ideally something (anything) could be gotten for him in a trade.
49ers' top remaining trade asset is not really a great trade asset at all
Gary Davenport of Bleacher Report has freshly named one player each NFL team should consider trading before the 2025 season, and he openly acknowledged the lack of good options the 49ers have left.
But in light of the previously mentioned acquisition, one player had to have stood out:
"With Huff coming to town, the 49ers could deem edge-rusher Yetur Gross-Matos expendable. Gross-Matos had four sacks last season in his first season with the 49ers, but three of those sacks came in one game. He also had a career-low 19 total tackles."
"Dealing Gross-Matos isn’t going to get the Niners more than a late-round draft pick. But the former second-round pick is still just 27, and an NFL team looking to add depth on the edge could believe that they can coax better football out of Gross-Matos in a new home."
"Now if you’ll forgive me, I have to ice my shoulder after that reach."
There is no doubt about Gross-Matos being expendable. He was expendable before the 49ers acquired Huff, and now he'll be firmly on the roster bubble when training camp starts.
As noted, June 1 was an important marker for the Niners to more easily part ways with Gross-Matos. According to Over The Cap, cutting him would create $4.82 million in cap space this year, with a $4.65 million dead money hit. A trade would clear $7.82 million in cap space, with $1.65 million left behind in dead money for 2025.
Gross-Matos should be traded, if the 49ers can find any kind of a market. To what extent a market exists right now is unclear, but it's also fair to assume there really isn't one. Waiting to showcase him during preseason games looks like a good idea, even if it still wouldn't mean getting more than a late-round pick.
Maybe there's a team out there who thinks Gross-Matos has untapped potential at 27 years old, even if 17 career sacks over five NFL seasons (66 games) clearly says otherwise. So if the 49ers don't just cut him, and there is a case to keep him around for experienced depth, they might end up unable to offload him in a trade.
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