49ers free agency: Too-early look at 5 targets to go after in 2022
By Peter Panacy
49ers NFL free agency target No. 3: Wide Receiver Cordarrelle Patterson
Unlike Gerald Everett, Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson is having a fine season despite Atlanta not exactly mustering up much of anything else on offense.
Atlanta, amid what’s sort of a halfway rebuild, might look to make the versatile Patterson a long-term fixture in its offense, although he’ll likely be seeking a playoff-contending team now that he’s on the wrong side of 30 years old.
Still, it’s the way the Falcons have used Patterson this season, both as a receiving threat and as a rusher, not unlike how San Francisco has deployed its own versatile weapon, Deebo Samuel, oh so successfully in 2021.
According to Kyle Shanahan, via NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco, the 49ers tried “three different times” going after Patterson on the open market and came close, even knowing fully well what they had in Samuel.
Maybe a fourth time will be a charm.
And just like the case with George Kittle, Samuel’s own injury history might be something the Niners want to guard against next season, too, making Patterson a worthy target once more.