All offseason long, insiders, analysts and fans alike have clamored for the San Francisco 49ers to trade for Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin.
McLaurin has been in the midst of a heated contract dispute with Washington, and the 49ers receiving corps has been in desperate need of help after injuries to basically all of their best wide receivers.
Unfortunately, those dreams of Scary Terry in San Francisco in 2025 are not going to come to fruition. Washington signed McLaurin to a three-year contract extension worth up to $96 million on Monday August 25, 2025. McLaurin’s beef with the Commanders is over.
McLaurin is exactly the wide receiver that the 49ers are dying to have right now. In the past four seasons he has played in every game and amassed over 1,000 receiving yards each season. He has also made two Pro Bowls.
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Durable and prolific: exactly the kind of wideout the 49ers are lacking heading into Week 1. Their best healthy receiver is Ricky Pearsall, and he has only 400 career receiving yards.
49ers Trade Miss Hurts Even More After Two Offseason Trades
One main reason why many fans thought the 49ers and Commanders would be perfect partners for a Terry McLaurin trade is because the two teams have linked on two big offseason trades already.
First, on March 12, 2025, the 49ers sent WR Deebo Samuel to the Commanders in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round draft pick, which they used to select RB Jordan James.
Then, just a few days ago on Friday August 22, 2025, the 49ers made a deal with the Commanders to bring RB Brian Robinson to San Francisco.
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Adam Peters and John Lynch obviously like doing business with one another. But sadly for 49ers fans, a McLaurin deal was never in the cards.
Any Big Targets Left?
Terry McLaurin feels like the last big wide receiver that was available on the trade market. Are there any big moves left that the 49ers could make at wide receiver before the start of the season.
For one, Gabe Davis and Amari Cooper are still free agents. The 49ers may not be willing to pay Cooper or Davis, however. The biggest obstacle to bringing those two to town is financial.
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The 49ers have also been linked to Tyreek Hill in trade rumors all offseason. But as the last big receiver on the market, Hill is going to command a hefty return and a lot of competition from other WR needy teams.
49ers Issues With Jauan Jennings Getting Worse
To make all of this feel even worse, Tim Kawakami reported on Sunday August 24, 2025 that the 49ers could place WR Jauan Jennings on injured reserve if his contract stalemate isn’t resolved soon.
Jennings has been missing practice with a calf injury.
If Jennings is put on IR, he would be forced to miss at least the first four games. The 49ers would lose their only reliable wide receiver who is even moderately healthy.
On the other hand, putting Jennings on IR would open up a valuable roster spot for the 49ers, who are injured all over the roster. If they don’t feel like they can rely on Jennings to suit up Week 1, they may be forced to put him on IR and sign another receiver.
Which doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll get someone like Cooper or Davis. The 49ers have cycled in and out practice squad wide receivers all offseason in hope that someone will stick. They’d likely sign yet another low cost, low-ceiling wideout if Jennings is unavailable.
In the wake of the McLaurin deal, what do you think the 49ers should do next?
