San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan liked their roster. Still, adding a difference-maker like running back Christian McCaffrey was enticing. Shanahan was skeptical that the 49ers would be able to land the star player, though.
While Lynch and the 49ers wanted to close the deal quickly, the Carolina Panthers had no reason to rush through trade talks. Instead, waiting was advantageous because it allowed other interested teams to join the conversation.
One of those other teams was the Los Angeles Rams.
San Francisco had already offered the Panthers a second- and third-round draft pick. The team was willing to offer an additional selection in 2024, which turned out to be the fifth-round pick. At that point, with the Panthers still willing to wait, Shanahan wasn't anticipating a deal would get done.
While Lynch didn't have confirmation that the Rams were the team with which they were eventually competing, he had an idea it was them. Los Angeles offered Carolina similar selections but threw in a fourth-rounder in 2024 and running back Cam Akers.
Panthers general manager Scott Fitterer returned to the 49ers, asking for a fourth-round pick in 2023 to top the Rams' offer. Los Angeles didn't own a fourth-rounder in 2023.
"That was a lot for us, but ultimately, we said, 'For how we believe he can be the difference for us, and we believe this team has a chance for the whole thing this year, let's go do it,'" Lynch told The Athletic's Tim Kawakami on The TK Show podcast. "... I'm happy we did."
McCaffrey was a difference-maker this past weekend against the Rams, accounting for about half the 49ers' total yards in the 31-14 win at SoFi Stadium. In addition, McCaffrey pulled off the hat trick, scoring touchdowns as a passer, runner, and receiver.
"He's not going to throw a touchdown, run for a touchdown, and catch one in every game, but just his presence, I think, will affect the game in a big way each and every week," Lynch said.
Kawakami noted that playing against McCaffrey in the Week 8 matchup probably wouldn't have been much fun, had the 49ers lost out to the Rams in the bidding war.
"That factored in as well," Lynch said while laughing.
McCaffrey has a salary cap hit of just $690,000 this season. However, that number increases to about $12 million each of the next three seasons. That's top running back money, but not something with which the 49ers are overly concerned.
"I was blown away because sometimes these teams do conversions and things to help their cap out, and I believe that's what Carolina did," Lynch explained. "As a result, Christian is completely pre-paid for this year. So that's why the comp got so high too. To have the opportunity at a player like that at the minimum salary, that never happens. And that was the case here.
"Sure, he's top of the market in the running back world moving forward, but I think Christian is so much more than a running back. I think that's actually a pretty good number for us. Players like that, you make it work, and we've got a lot of smart people here who help me along with that type of planning, and I think we're in good shape. I really do."