What it Would Take the 49ers to Trade for DeForest Buckner

The 49ers need to find a team that's willing to trade a difference-making defensive tackle before the deadline, and they just might have found one.

The Indianapolis Colts are 2-4 after losing to the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. After the game, Colts defensive tackle DeForest Buckner stood at his locker and answered questions, and he was so upset that his head seemed like it was going to explode.

"I'm pissed off, "Buckner said, "I'm sick and tired of the same song and dance every..." He paused for a second, choosing his next word carefully. Every day? Every week? Every month?

"Every year," Buckner said in a tone of cold condemnation. This comment made a Colts P.R. person uncomfortable, so he said, "a few more," trying to end the interview before Buckner said anything else that might go viral.

As you probably know, the 49ers drafted Buckner in 2016 and went to the Super Bowl with him in 2019. He was one of their best players. And yet, after they lost the Super Bowl to the Chiefs (the first time), they traded Buckner to the Colts so they could keep Arik Armstead and Jimmie Ward, neither of whom are on the team anymore. Now, the 49ers need Buckner back.

Their defensive line is an issue. Sure, it sacked Sam Darnold five times last week, but it lacks depth and a high-end closer. When the 49ers have a lead late in the game and the opponent has to pass to come back, the 49ers need someone who can sack the quarterback and end the game.

That player is supposed to be Nick Bosa, but he still hasn't fully recovered from this third ACL tear. He currently is out with a calf strain, which could be related to the knee injury. He still hasn't participated fully in practice yet this year, and he might not. It's unclear how he plans to manage his body.

Which means the 49ers have a choice. They could do nothing and simply hope that Bosa returns to full strength after the bye week, and stays healthy the rest of the season and plays like he did three years ago.

Or, the 49ers could be proactive and trade for a closing-caliber player on the defensive line. Someone such as Buckner.

Face it, they never should have traded Buckner in the first place. Trading Buckner for a first-round pick, which they spent on Javon Kinlaw, was one of the biggest blunders the 49ers have made in 10 years under Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch. They've been trying to replace him ever since.

Meanwhile, Buckner still is one of the best defensive tackles in the league. You just wouldn't know it, because the Colts haven't won more than nine games in a season since he arrived in 2020. They wasted his prime.

Now, they might trade him. That's because they're going nowhere, he's 32, he'll be a free agent at the end of the season and they could save millions of dollars if they trade him before the deadline. Plus, they might as well get something for him as opposed to receiving nothing in return if he leaves in free agency, which he will. Just listen to him.

So, what would it cost the 49ers to trade for Buckner? Probably no more than a fourth-round pick. Most teams probably wouldn't want to give away picks for half a season of Buckner. The 49ers are different. They're the Super Bowl favorites, and their Super Bowl window is closing as their stars get older. They need to win this season, and they know it.

The 49ers just have to decide if defensive tackle is their biggest need. Given the emergence of Gracen Halton and Sebastian Valdez, and the lingering questions regarding Bosa's knee/calf, the 49ers could decide to trade that fourth-round pick for an edge rusher such as Khalil Mack instead.

Stay tuned. The 49ers almost certainly will do something big before the deadline.