While the 49ers continue to come up in hypothetical trades for New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold, NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport isn’t anticipating them to be active in trade talks for the former No. 3 overall pick.
Rapoport on Friday joined Murph and Mac on KNBR in San Francisco and said he’s hearing the 49ers won’t be players in a Darnold deal.
“The response I’ve received on the Sam Darnold situation is, ‘do not expect the 49ers to be in it,'” Rapoport said. “Maybe it could change I guess theoretically anything is possible, I never rule anything out in this ridiculous, stupid world. I do not expect the 49ers, as of my knowledge right now, to be in it.”
There’s been plenty of smoke surrounding Darnold and the 49ers, but there’s never been a firm report that the two clubs have discussed a swap. Peter King of NBC Sports reported the Jets were expected to receive a high second-round pick for their QB. That’s a steep price for a player who’s on the final year of his rookie contract and has yet to prove in three seasons that he can play in the NFL.
While King reported on Pro Football Talk Live that someone who knows the 49ers well laid out a scenario where San Francisco trades for Darnold and keeps Jimmy Garoppolo.
Perhaps the club is monitoring that potential scenario, but again, a high second-round pick for one year of a backup quarterback who may not be a good NFL player is a tough ask when the team could use that pick to draft a quarterback who’s cheaper for four years instead of more expensive for one.
One possible scenario and the reason the 49ers are letting themselves be tied so outwardly to Darnold is because of their relationship with Jets head coach Robert Saleh. Perhaps, and this is pure speculation, they’re ok with their perceived involvement leading to Darnold fetching New York a first-round pick. Again, that’s all a hypothetical, but it offers an explanation for all the smoke surrounding the 49ers and Darnold when someone as plugged in as Rapoport doesn’t believe they’ll actually be involved in a trade.
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