Keion White trade grades: Did 49ers strike a bargain deal? Are Patriots better for unloading veteran?
Here's how we'd assess San Francisco's deal for pass-rushing help
•
2 min read
The 2025 NFL trade deadline is fast approaching, and several teams are getting a head start on midseason moves. On the same night the Pittsburgh Steelers acquired safety Kyle Dugger from the New England Patriots, another Patriots defender found a new home, as pass rusher Keion White was dealt to the San Francisco 49ers in a swap of late-round draft picks.
It wasn't long ago White was a premium investment in New England, arriving as a second-round pick in 2023. The 26-year-old Georgia Tech product made just four starts as a rookie, however, and was widely deemed a questionable fit for new coach Mike Vrabel's scheme this offseason. His role was also displaced by the arrival of more proven edge talent like Harold Landry Jr. and K'Lavon Chaisson, who combined for 10 sacks in New England's first eight games.
What, exactly, are the 49ers getting in White, then? And which side registers as the immediate winner of the trade? Here's how we'd assess the deal ahead of the NFL's Nov. 4 trade deadline:
The trade
- 49ers get: DE Keion White, 2026 seventh-round pick
- Patriots get: 2026 sixth-round pick
2025 NFL Trade Deadline Tracker: Live updates and analysis as Eagles bolster secondary
Zachary Pereles
49ers: B+
San Francisco has big bucks tied to Nick Bosa and also acquired Bryce Huff via trade prior to the season, but Bosa is out for the year and Huff is freshly bruised as the club's top remaining pass rusher. The latter should be fine to return to the field in short order, but no matter how you slice it, the 49ers needed more bodies in the trenches. White may be exactly that, but he could also be much more, given he's still just 26 and only a couple years removed from a full-time role in which he logged five sacks and 16 quarterback hits. If he pans out as a last-minute addition, he's also signed through 2026 as part of his rookie deal. And what are the 49ers giving up for that possibility? The right to make a sixth-round pick versus a seventh-rounder next year. This is a classic low-risk, high-reward gamble; while it may not turn Robert Saleh's defense into the world-beater it once was, it makes a world of sense.
Patriots: C+
New England can be credited for getting anything at all in return for a player who evidently did not fit Vrabel's plans on defense; the new coach is here to stay, but White couldn't even warrant a reserve role in the Patriots' last game. Still, this is a young pass rusher under an affordable deal for another 1.5 seasons. This isn't Dugger, whose exit makes a ton of financial sense, given he'd signed a lucrative extension but no longer registered as an integral piece of the lineup. Who's to say New England won't be in the market for longer-term edge-rushing help sooner than later, with Landry nearing 30 as the top outside linebacker and Chaisson potentially headed for a rich 2026 free agency on a one-year, prove-it deal? Swapping late-round picks isn't the end of the world here, but giving up on White after just a half-year of the Vrabel regime isn't necessarily a deal to be championed.
