DeForest Buckner trade grade: Colts, 49ers both enact quality plan
DeForest Buckner has been traded to the Indianapolis Colts with the San Francisco 49ers getting back a first-round pick. Grading the trade for both teams.
Throughout his first four years in the NFL, DeForest Buckner has looked the part of the No. 7 overall pick the San Francisco 49ers used to select him. He has 28.5 sacks over his first four seasons, has registered at least 61 tackles in every season and has proven to be a player with no real weaknesses. And now, as the 2020 league year kicks off, he now plays for the Indianapolis Colts.
On Wednesday, a day filled with blockbuster moves and in which DeForest Buckner wasn’t the only huge piece on the move, the 49ers traded the defensive tackle who turns 26 years old on March 17 to the Colts in exchange for Indy’s 2020 first-round pick (No. 13 overall).
Buckner is a massive domino to fall in the offseason as he was set to enter the final year of his rookie deal. Now, not only is he in Indianapolis but the Colts have locked him up to a monster contract extension that will pay him roughly $21 million per year.
Trade AND deal: Colts trade first-round pick (13th overall) to 49ers for All-Pro DT DeForest Buckner, who already has agreed to a massive contract that pays him $21 million a year and makes him the second-highest paid DT in NFL history behind only Aaron Donald, sources tell ESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 16, 2020
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It’s quite clear that both the Colts and 49ers have larger plans at play with the DeForest Buckner trade. But trying to take those plans and the immediate effects into account, let’s hand out a grade to both teams for their work in this trade.
Indianapolis Colts
Colts general manager Chris Ballard has shown that he’s not afraid to get aggressive but will do so judiciously and when it makes sense. Sitting with the No. 13 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, they were not going to get a player the talent level of DeForest Buckner, at least not someone that they are sure can play at the level the former Niner has proven he can.
By that measure, Indianapolis hit a home run with this trade and contract. The move is likely going to look even better if they are able to sign a veteran quarterback such as Philip Rivers. And they still maintain the flexibility to trade back into the late first round of the draft to select a young quarterback that they can groom to eventually take over from the veteran Rivers.
The only reason this move doesn’t get top marks for the Colts, however, is that they are paying just huge money for Buckner. Making him the second-highest-paid defensive tackle in NFL history makes sense to a degree given the rising salary cap but, at the same time, it’s always a risky proposition to give a player who is great but not a superstar that type of money. That’s the case with Buckner and knocks the grade for Indianapolis just slightly as a result.
Final Grade: A-
San Francisco 49ers
On one hand, San Francisco is giving away one of their best defensive players — which is saying something given the strength of that unit — in exchange for draft capital that likely won’t fully replace what the Niners got from DeForest Buckner. However, the other hand has the whole picture and it’s much more favorable for the 49ers.
General manager John Lynch just handed out a long-term deal to Arik Armstead. While Buckner has been more consistently productive than Armstead, signing Armstead to that deal creates a number of problems for the 49ers in the long run. The team was already up against the salary cap in a tough spot and would have to pay Buckner a hefty new extension after the 2020 season had they kept him on the roster.
Instead, the 49ers are able to recoup a first-round pick for Buckner in the 2020 NFL Draft, where they are without a second- and third-round pick and could use any extra help. Now with the No. 13 pick, they have the ability to grab a top-15 prospect in the class and then trade down from their own No. 31 pick to get more value on Day 2 of the draft.
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So while Lynch and the Niners are losing a fantastic player, they are playing a larger game of chess with this trade. And though they can’t get top marks because they’re losing Buckner, they get close to it for the game they are playing in trying to stay competitive in their defense of the NFC.
Final Grade: B+