49ers acquire Emmanuel Sanders in trade with Broncos

DENVER, CO - AUGUST 19: Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders #10 of the Denver Broncos smiles on the field during the playing of the national anthem before a preseason game against the San Francisco 49ers at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on August 19, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - AUGUST 19: Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders #10 of the Denver Broncos smiles on the field during the playing of the national anthem before a preseason game against the San Francisco 49ers at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on August 19, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /
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The San Francisco 49ers made their move at wide receiver, landing veteran pass catcher Emmanuel Sanders from the Denver Broncos in exchange for some NFL Draft picks.

On Monday, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters he would be open to improving the team, yet felt “there are guys in our building that I do think the answers are here.”

Amid a slew of reports and rumors the Niners were shopping the market for wide receivers ahead of the NFL trade deadline, however, news finally broke Tuesday Shanahan and Co. had acquired someone they liked, former Denver Broncos wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders.

Denver’s 9News’ Mike Klis first reported the transaction:

As reported, the 49ers will ship off their third- and fourth-round NFL Draft picks, getting Sanders and Denver’s fifth rounder in return. Since San Francisco, 6-0 through seven weeks, is projected to be picking very late in the draft order, and the two-win Broncos are likely to pick high, the compensation roughly boils down to a third-round pick.

Sanders, 32 years old, has 30 catches for 367 yards and two touchdowns this season. Before the trade, the Niners’ leading wide receiver was Marquise Goodwin with just 181 yards.

Emmanuel Sanders Receiving Table
GameReceReceReceReceReceRece
YearAgeTmPosNo.GTgtRecYdsTDY/GCtch%Fmb
201023PITwr88135028376228.956.0%2
201124PIT88114322288226.251.2%0
201225PITwr88167544626139.158.7%3
201326PITWR881611367740646.359.3%1
2014*27DENWR10161411011404987.871.6%1
201528DENWR1015136761135675.755.9%2
2016*29DENWR1016137791032564.557.7%1
201730DENWR10129247555246.351.1%0
201831DENWR10129871868472.372.4%1
201932DENWR1074430367252.468.2%0
CareCare13492956573913955.260.8%11
6 yr6 yrDEN7864840453612868.762.3%5
4 yr4 yrPIT5628116120301136.357.3%6

Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 10/22/2019.

In December of 2018, Shanahan said the following about Sanders (h/t The Athletic’s Nicki Jhabvala):

"Emmanuel is the man. He’s always been the man. He’s extremely quick. He knows how to separate, he can beat man coverage and he’s also fearless. He’s aggressive with the ball, he doesn’t mind going there and blocking, he doesn’t mind going over the middle and he’s one of the tougher challenges in the league."

According to The MMQB’s Albert Breer, the 49ers were among those interested in former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Mohamed Sanu, who played under Shanahan back in 2015 and 2016. But the New England Patriots ended up getting Sanu’s services in exchange for a second-round draft pick on Tuesday morning.

Instead, the Niners land Sanders.

There is a bit of a caveat, though, as Sanders will be a free agent in 2020. San Francisco might be interested in getting more out of him than just a short-term “rental” for this season, so that’s something to monitor.

But there is the bonus of Sanders having played under Broncos offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello, who served as Shanahan’s quarterbacks coach before taking his current position in Denver. That should make Sanders’ transition to Shanahan’s offense a bit easier.

Next. NFL power rankings: 49ers keep winning in Week 8. dark

This story is only developing, so stay tuned!