The wide receiver market in 2020 NFL free agency isn't exactly overflowing with big names, what with Amari Cooper in line to be tagged by the Dallas Cowboys and Robby Anderson headlining the rest of the available veterans, but San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has openly offered an alternative for teams looking to add speed on the outside. As The Athletic's Matt Barrows reported from the Scouting Combine, Shanahan told the media Wednesday that the Niners could trade Marquise Goodwin this offseason. The coach denied speculation that Goodwin, who's under contract with San Francisco through 2021, would be released ahead of free agency, instead, seeming to make the veteran available for any interested suitors.
"We wouldn't release Marquise. He's too valuable," Shanahan said, per Barrows. "I know he fell out of the rotation last year, then he had an injury (and) wanted to go on IR so he could get it cleaned up. I think it is right now. I haven't seen him for a while. Marquise is a guy who can play in this league. If he's on this team, he's going to be competing with that group and, if not, I feel pretty confident another team would want him ... So we'll have him come back and compete, and if that doesn't work out we could always possibly trade him."
Reading between the lines, it's not hard to suggest Shanahan is simply trying to drum up interest in a player the Niners would've otherwise cut loose. Goodwin, after all, finished 2019 with just 12 catches, missing seven games due to injury a year after separate issues limited him to 11 games. Due $4.9 million in 2020, he'd save the Niners an estimated $3.65 million this year if released.
It's not impossible someone could come calling with an offer of a late-round draft pick, though. Despite the durability concerns, Goodwin has consistently been a deep threat when on the field, averaging 16.6 yards per catch throughout his career. He's also just two years removed from a breakout as San Francisco's top big-play wideout, finishing 2017 with 56 catches for 962 yards and two touchdowns -- a stat line that ultimately earned the former Buffalo Bills target a three-year, $19.25 million extension.
