The 49ers Signing Naquan Jones Could Foreshadow a Much Bigger Move

The 49ers just signed Naquan Jones off the Vikings practice squad. He's 28, he's a nose tackle, he's played in the NFL for a while, he's a body. He's not going to come in and start for the 49ers. He's really a vote of confidence in C.J. West. It's an acknowledgement that the Niners need a nose tackle. It's clearly the worst position on the team right now. They don't really have a NFL caliber starting caliber nose tackle, but they hope it's C.J. West. They drafted him in the fourth round last year. They need it to be C.J. West. So far it hasn't been C.J. West. I'm not confident that it will be C.J. West, but it's week two and the Niners don't have a lot of options. So they signed a guy who can give them depth. But if C.J. West doesn't work out over the next few weeks, I wouldn't be surprised if the Niners make a big move for a starting defensive tackle slash nose tackle closer to the trade deadline. And I think I know who they could potentially get. I'm thinking Washington Commanders defensive tackle, Deron Payne. That team is truly awful. They're 0-2. They just lost their starting quarterback. They're probably going to tank or the wheels are going to fall off, however you want to phrase it. And maybe they don't know that just yet, but they will soon. And when they decide that it's time to start selling off veterans, I would imagine Deron Payne would be one of them. He's almost 30, if not 30 already. He's going to be a free agent next year, so they might want to get something for him. Maybe the Niners could get him for a late third or an early fourth. Maybe they could trade C.J. West for him. Kidding. But I think trading for Deron Payne would actually be a power move. If you had Deron Payne on this team, they actually have the beginnings of a run defense. You put him next to Mikel Williams, assuming he ever comes back, that's a pretty good D-line. And I don't know if they'll have that with C.J. West. So if they're serious about the defensive line, which they say they are, look for the Niners to go get Deron Payne. All they have to do is call Adam Peters and tell him that if he wants a job with the Niners when the Commanders fire him in a few months, fork him over. Hey, maybe the Niners could trade Brandon Ayuk for him. Kidding.