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Insider Says 49ers Could Trade for Patriots DT Davon Godchaux

The 49ers are smart to target defense at the trade deadline considering theirs has underperformed this season.

Grant Cohn

Nov 6, 2022; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots defensive tackle Davon Godchaux (92) takes a drink during the second half against the Indianapolis Colts at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images
Nov 6, 2022; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots defensive tackle Davon Godchaux (92) takes a drink during the second half against the Indianapolis Colts at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images / Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images
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The 49ers could be on the verge of a trade but it might not be a big splash.

The NFL trade deadline line is today at 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time. And according to The Athletic's Dianna Russini, the 49ers could trade for New England Patriots starting defensive tackle Davon Godchaux.

"(The 49ers) have called around looking to add to their defense," writes Russini. "New England defensive tackle Davon Godchaux is available, and the Niners know it."

The 49ers are smart to target defense at the trade deadline considering theirs has underperformed this season. And the biggest disappointment on the defense has been the defensive line. It hasn't done anything at a high level through eight games.

One issue for the 49ers defense has been the loss of defensive tackle Javon Hargrave who's on Injured Reserve with a torn triceps. Hargrave was the 49ers' second-best defensive lineman after Nick Bosa. Now, the 49ers' second-best defensive lineman probably is Sam Okuayinonu who started the season on the practice squad. Godchaux certainly would add talent and depth.

But he wouldn't help the pass rush. Godchaux essentially is a two-down nose tackle whose specialty is shutting down the run. And the 49ers run defense certainly could use some help. But their pass rush is a bigger issue.

And Godchaux wouldn't necessarily move the needle as much as Za'Darius Smith will on the Lions or De'Andre Hopkins will on the Chiefs. If the 49ers are serious about winning the Super Bowl this season, they might need to make a bigger trade.

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Grant Cohn
GRANT COHN

Grant Cohn has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily since 2011. He spent the first nine years of his career with the Santa Rosa Press Democrat where he wrote the Inside the 49ers blog and covered famous coaches and athletes such as Jim Harbaugh, Colin Kaepernick and Patrick Willis. In 2012, Inside the 49ers won Sports Blog of the Year from the Peninsula Press Club. In 2020, Cohn joined FanNation and began writing All49ers. In addition, he created a YouTube channel which has become the go-to place on YouTube to consume 49ers content. Cohn's channel typically generates roughly 3.5 million viewers per month, while the 49ers' official YouTube channel generates roughly 1.5 million viewers per month. Cohn live streams almost every day and posts videos hourly during the football season. Cohn is committed to asking the questions that 49ers fans want answered, and providing the most honest and interactive coverage in the country. His loyalty is to the reader and the viewer, not the team or any player or coach. Cohn is a new-age multimedia journalist with an old-school mentality, because his father is Lowell Cohn, the legendary sports columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle from 1979 to 1993. The two have a live podcast every Tuesday. Grant Cohn grew up in Oakland and studied English Literature at UCLA from 2006 to 2010. He currently lives in Oakland with his wife.

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