3 teams who should trade for 49ers Solomon Thomas

The San Francisco 49ers possess a dominant defense, which could facilitate a trade for the defensive end, Solomon Thomas.  Niner Noise looks at three teams who could enlist his services.

The ferocious defensive line led the San Francisco 49ers to the 2019 Super Bowl bid.  While several members on defense achieved significant career highs, defensive end Solomon Thomas served in a relief role.

There is nothing wrong with a team having depth. However, a team does not aim for rotational talent with the third overall pick at the NFL Draft. Thomas hasn’t lived up to the billing after being selected there in 2017.

In no way is this a knock on Thomas as a person.

Thomas, or “Solly,” as teammates know him, is quite a remarkable humanitarian. Solly helps his community by participating in:

• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention walks
• Community Blitz to foster inclusion and anti-bullying efforts in elementary schools
• Counseling and Support Services for Youth to raise mental health awareness
• One Love Foundation teaching high school students about healthy relationships
• San Jose’s Martha’s Kitchen to feed those in need

After the tragic death of his sister, Ella, Thomas’ off-field work has centered around destigmatizing the need for mental health. When the 49ers became the first team in the NFL to adopt an emotional support dog, Thomas was not only a big advocate, but he even helped name the tiniest team member, Zoë, the French bulldog:

It’s easy to see why fans and the franchise alike highly regard Thomas; he’s an exemplary person with a great heart.

But the NFL is a business, not the National Feels League. As mentioned previously, Thomas has not lived up to his draft value.

In 2017, the 49ers traded with the Chicago Bears to move down in the draft from the second to third overall pick, where San Francisco selected Thomas. Thomas has played in 46 regular-season games, and the stats don’t yield the return on investment one would expect from such a high draft pick.

In three full seasons, Thomas has made:

• only six sacks
• 16 tackles for loss
• one fumble recovery
• only 20 tackle assists

One could attribute Thomas’ on-field struggles on the emotional toll of his sister’s loss in 2018, and while that was a factor, there was more to the story. For some reason, the 49ers played Solly as an EDGE in 2017 and 2018 instead of his natural role of inside rusher.

That changed in 2019, and his stats improved, but it may have been too little, too late. Thomas went from being on the field in over 70 percent of all defensive snaps in 2017 compared to only 40 percent in 2019. With a stacked front four and dominant front seven, Thomas’ role diminished.

His saving grace for an NFL future?

Thomas now has playoff experience, and when lined up in his fundamental role inside, he delivers.  He is a superb run-stopper. He’s amassed 73 solo and 93 combined tackles. During San Francisco’s playoff run, Thomas played a role in limiting both the Minnesota Vikings’ and Green Bay Packers’ talented backfield.

Though Solly only played 30 percent of the snaps, he registered one sack and helped hold the Vikings to a mere 21 rushing yards, a postseason franchise record. Solly was also instrumental against the Packers, as he helped limit their ground attack to 62 yards on 16 rushing attempts.

It’s that late-season stat push that could solidify a trade for Thomas. The 49ers are not likely to get near the value they paid to acquire him, but here are three potential teams that could immediately benefit from Solly’s talent.