With Fred Warner Sidelined, the 49ers Face a Trade Deadline Dilemma That Could Redefine Their Season.QQ

Before the 2025 season began, if you had made a list of players the San Francisco 49ers could not afford to lose, it likely would have included guys like Nick Bosa, George Kittle, Christian McCaffrey, Brock Purdy, and Fred Warner.

Of that list, only McCaffrey has yet to miss time, and Warner’s dislocated and broken ankle suffered in Sunday’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers makes him the latest casualty in this most bizarre of seasons for the Niners.

When Bosa went down, the conversation immediately turned to the NFL trade deadline and what pass-rushers the Niners could trade for to help right the ship and take advantage of their 4-1 start to the season.

But losing Warner, the unquestioned captain of the 49ers defense, feels like the gut punch that closes the door on most of those conversations, at least in part.

Sure, there’s still a case to be made that when the offense gets back to full strength that it has a chance to keep San Francisco in most games. But the defense is now without its two best players, and the balance may have tipped too far toward needing the offense to score 30-plus points every week to win.

Fred Warner injury is a roadblock to 49ers’ NFL trade deadline plans

This isn’t ideal, especially if the offense never gets back to full strength, and certainly isn’t a recipe for a long playoff run or a potential Super Bowl championship.

All this to say the 49ers absolutely should not sell the farm to bring in a pass-rusher who will not be able to replicate what Bosa does or a linebacker who isn’t even in Warner’s stratosphere in order to salvage this season. That was always going to be a difficult prospect for this squad even with Warner healthy, but the roster feels too far gone to push all the chips on this year.

There’s still a world where the offense does get back to full health and leads San Francisco to some wins even with the defense dangling by a thread, propelling the 49ers into a Wild Card spot. But this doesn’t feel like a team that can be in the mix for a championship when the dust settles on the 2025 campaign.

This doesn’t mean the Niners shouldn’t make a trade if there are opportunities, but this isn’t the year for a half-a-year rental who pushes San Francisco from the fringes of contention into the heart of the discussion. If there’s a move to be made with upside beyond 2025 that will also help this year, then that’s the type of trade you make.

But it’s fairly clear that losing Warner was the final nail for the 49ers, and while they shouldn’t punt on this season, they also can’t treat this trade deadline as if they are one player away from getting back to the Super Bowl.