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NFL.com Gives the 49ers a C+ for their Acquisition of Khalil Davis

Low risk, low reward.

Grant Cohn

Sep 15, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Chicago Bears guard Nate Davis (64) attempts to block Houston Texans defensive tackle Khalil Davis (94) during the game at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
Sep 15, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Chicago Bears guard Nate Davis (64) attempts to block Houston Texans defensive tackle Khalil Davis (94) during the game at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
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At least the 49ers didn't do nothing at the trade deadline.

They traded for backup defensive tackle Khalil Davis. And they gave up just a seventh-round pick in 2026 to get him. Low risk, low reward. Nothing earth-shattering.

That's why NFL.com gave the 49ers a c-plus for this trade.

"The Niners beefed up their interior defensive line by adding Davis to the rotation," writes NFL.com's Kevin Patra. "The 28-year-old has netted one sack, 11 QB pressures and seven stops on 164 snaps in 2024, per Next Gen Stats. With Javon Hargrave on injured reserve, San Francisco needed aid, particularly against the run, where it has struggled this season. Davis isn’t a game-tilter but gives the Niners depth for a low cost. Given the compensation, Davis could have been a cut candidate for Houston. The Texans are slated to get Mario Edwards Jr. back from suspension after Week 10, so moving Davis frees up a spot. Davis, a sixth-round pick by Tampa Bay in 2020, played 18 snaps or fewer in six of nine games this season. If he were indeed a cut candidate, Houston was wise to get a pick for him."

So instead of waiting for Houston to cut Davis, the 49ers sent him the least valuable draft pick imaginable to take him off their hands. Which means Davis is replaceable and the 49ers know it. If Javon Hargrave and Kevin Givens return from injury this season, the 49ers could cut Davis to make room on the 53-man roster.

A c-plus is a generous grade for this 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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