Chase Young to the rescue: 49ers add pass-rush help to underperforming D-line

Eric Williams

NFC West Writer

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said after his team’s third straight loss that the answer to the team’s struggles was already in the building.

Well, perhaps Shanahan had second thoughts, as the 49ers executed a massive trade for a second straight year at the trade deadline, sending a third-round pick in the 2024 draft to the Washington Commanders for edge rusher Chase Young, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 draft.

“If we think there is a chance to improve us, we’ll do it,” Shanahan told reporters on Monday, a day before Tuesday’s trade deadline. “It doesn’t sound like there’s a lot of options out there, but it doesn’t mean for sure no. I know we’ll look up that all the way up to the deadline and see if anything changes.”

The 49ers had already traded for edge rusher Randy Gregory in a swap of late-round picks with the Denver Broncos earlier this month. However, San Francisco has just five sacks during the team’s three-game losing streak.

San Francisco also saw the Seattle Seahawks, now the NFC West division leaders, make a trade for New York Giants defensive lineman Leonard Williams on Monday.

Last year, the 49ers traded second-, third- and fourth-round picks in 2023 and a fifth-rounder in 2024 for running back Christian McCaffrey.

Young now reunites with former Ohio State product in fellow defensive end Nick Bosa. San Francisco made Bosa the highest-paid non-quarterback just before the season started, but he has just three sacks in eight games.

Bosa & Co. have underperformed defensively of late, giving up an average of 426 total yards a contest over the past two games. San Francisco also has allowed an average of 123 rushing yards over the past three games, all losses.

49ers acquire Chase Young from Commanders for 2024 third-round pick

The addition of Young gives San Francisco a four-player rotation at defensive end with Clelin Ferrell, Bosa and Gregory. The 24-year-old Young, in the final year of his rookie deal after Washington declined to pick up his fifth-year option, has five sacks in seven games this season.

San Francisco has $41.4 million in salary cap money allocated to the defensive line this season (No. 5 in the NFL) and a league-high $61.6 million earmarked for the position group in 2024.

But so far this season, the 49ers have not received a good return from their investment. The 49ers’ 18 sacks on the year is tied for 19th in the league. According to Next Gen Stats, San Francisco’s sack rate (5.2%) is No. 27 in the NFL.

Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.