The San Francisco 49ers have had some very difficult pills to swallow in the 2025 offseason. The roster has taken on a ton of change with key players departing this year, but they also had to back up the Brinks truck for quarterback Brock Purdy, and that decision has informed just about every other.
The biggest move the 49ers have made this offseason, at least if you're asking me, is bringing Robert Saleh back as the defensive coordinator. Saleh earned his head coaching gig with the New York Jets after an outstanding stint in San Francisco as the defensive coordinator under Kyle Shanahan, and player development on that side of the ball has always been a strength of his.
One of his best success stories with the Jets was pass rusher Bryce Huff, who earned a three-year, $51 million contract with the Eagles last offseason and $34 million in guaranteed money after his time with the Jets.
Huff is now being traded to the San Francisco 49ers for a reunion with Saleh and a move that could reignite his career.
Bryce Huff sent to 49ers in fascinating offseason trade
ESPN sources: 49ers and Eagles are working to finalize a trade that will send edge rusher Bryce Huff to San Francisco for a mid-round pick. The trade cannot and would not be processed until after June 1. But both sides are working to make it happen, and Huff already has reworked… pic.twitter.com/FJeGc9Cfwx
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 30, 2025
This is a great trade for both Huff and the 49ers as a whole. The Niners have lost so much this offseason on both sides of the ball that it feels borderline impossible for them to live up to the expectations everyone's going to have for them based on how recently they've been atop the NFC.
This offseason felt like a true "reset" year for San Francisco, but a trade to acquire Huff is exactly the type of "Moneyball" kind of move that can pay huge dividends for this team. The 49ers also used their first-round pick in 2025 on Georgia's Mykel Williams. They used a second-round pick on Alfred Collins to upgrade the defensive line.
Adding Huff into the mix gives the Niners another player opposite Nick Bosa to raise the floor of the pass rush and potentially give them a double-digit sack guy. It also takes pressure off of Mykel Williams and will allow Saleh to utilize all of these guys in the way he envisions as opposed to just force-feeding them snaps because no one else is talented enough to play.
For the Eagles, it gives a chance to Jalyx Hunt to prove he can be long-term what we saw in the playoffs.
It's a rare win-win-win kind of trade for all involved, and once it's finalized will be a huge boost to an otherwise rough offseason for the 49ers.