King: 49ers shouldn’t trade for Panthers’ McCaffrey originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
The Carolina Panthers might be waving the white flag on the 2022 NFL season after firing coach Matt Rhule on Monday following their 37-15 loss to the 49ers in Week 5 at Bank of America Stadium.
Now that the coach is gone, the next step for the Panthers might be a fire sale, selling off any players who have value and accumulating draft picks.
One player who could be on the move before the NFL trade deadline on Nov. 1 is running back Christian McCaffrey. During a Tuesday appearance on 95.7 The Game’s “Damon & Ratto,” NBC Sports’ Peter King believes the 49ers should pass on pursuing the 26-year-old.
“I wouldn’t if I were [the 49ers],” King said. “I mean, the only way I would do it is if it didn’t cost very much and if they weren’t worried very much about the cap implications.
“And you have to ask yourself if the Panthers are going to pick up a chunk of the money and you don’t have to worry about any of things like the workout bonus or the prorated bonus …. maybe you do it, but I wouldn’t do it for big compensation, that’s for sure.”
McCaffrey signed a four-year $64 million contract in 2020, and over the next two seasons, the running back will have a base salary of $11.8 million; then, in 2025, the Panthers star will earn $12 million.
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If the money doesn’t scare off the 49ers or another potential suitor, McCaffrey’s injury record might. The Stanford product has missed 23 of the Panthers’ past 33 games due to injury heading into the 2022 NFL season.
When healthy, there is no doubt that San Francisco could use a player of McCaffrey’s caliber; however, with a checkered injury history and a lot of money owed, perhaps bringing him back to Northern California might not be a good idea.