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The Carolina Panthers locker room was stunned on Oct. 20, 2022. Christian McCaffrey – their offensive centerpiece – was headed to San Francisco.
Even now, some fans question why the team shipped away its best player. The answer wasn’t complicated: Carolina was 1-5, had just fired Matt Rhule, and hadn’t sniffed the playoffs since 2017. They needed a reset.
The organization was hunting for draft capital to rebuild and grab a franchise quarterback. With just four picks in the 2023 draft, they needed assets – and McCaffrey was their most valuable trade chip besides edge rusher Brian Burns, who many in the organization viewed as irreplaceable. (Ironically, they’d later reject two first-rounders from the Rams for Burns in 2023, only to send him to the Giants a year later for a package headlined by a second-rounder).
“It was never like an epiphany, like, ‘What a great idea! Let’s trade Christian McCaffrey,’” said a league source familiar with the trade discussions. “But to get a quarterback you have to sacrifice.”
The 49ers, Rams and Bills emerged as potential landing spots. Then-GM Scott Fitterer wanted a first-round pick, but none of these contenders were willing to offer that.
San Francisco – who didn’t have a 2023 first-rounder – ultimately made the best offer: second-, third- and fourth-round picks in 2023, and a fifth-rounder in 2024. Owner David Tepper approved the deal.
McCaffrey’s career trajectory since? He led the NFL in rushing in 2023, won Offensive Player of the Year, and helped the 49ers reach the Super Bowl. This season, at 29, he tops the league in scrimmage yards.
The Panthers believed they’d found their franchise QB in the 2023 draft when they packaged picks – including that 49ers’ second-rounder from the McCaffrey trade – to move up to No. 1 for Alabama’s Bryce Young.
As Carolina (6-5) prepares to face McCaffrey and San Francisco (7-4) on Monday night at Levi Stadium (8:20 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN) for the first time since the trade, one question lingers:
Did the Panthers actually get better from this deal?
“It was never, ‘Oh, the team has to get rid of McCaffrey,’” said another league source involved in the discussions. “It was more prompted by teams calling and the prospects of having multiple picks for him was what was most enticing. The cupboard was bare.
“I don’t think anybody thought [Carolina] won this deal.”
