49ers acquire Christian McCaffrey from Panthers for four draft picks

The San Francisco 49ers have themselves a major offensive weapon.

The 49ers on Thursday night acquired Christian McCaffrey in a trade with the Carolina Panthers. The news of San Francisco trading for McCaffrey comes hours after a report saying that the Niners were a contender to deal for the running back.

NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport says the 49ers are sending Carolina four draft picks for McCaffrey, though none are first-round picks.

The haul includes:

– 2023 2nd-round pick
– 2023 3rd-round pick
– 2023 4th-round pick
– 2024 5th-round pick

Rapoport adds that the Panthers were in trade talks with the Los Angeles Rams in addition to the 49ers.

In the 2021 offseason, the Rams were able to acquire Matthew Stafford from the Lions at the same time San Francisco was trying to get the former Detroit quarterback. This time around, the Niners beat out their division rivals for a desired target.

McCaffrey is under contract for the next three seasons. Between him and Deebo Samuel, Kyle Shanahan will have two of the most versatile offensive players in the league to draw plays for.