49ers Blog and Q&A: Harbaugh to Harbaugh: 49ers trade for WR Anquan Boldin

49ers Blog and Q&A

News, notes and reader questions about the San Francisco 49ers

• Ask Matt a 49ers question

March 11, 2013

Harbaugh to Harbaugh: 49ers trade for WR Anquan Boldin

If you can't beat him, trade for him.

That's what the 49ers did today with receiver Anquan Boldin, agreeing to send a sixth-round pick to Baltimore for the veteran wideout, who gave the 49ers fits in the Super Bowl. The Ravens were pressed against the salary cap and would have had trouble accounting for Boldin's $6 million salary.

The trade is pending a physical, which won't be completed until Boldin, 32, returns from a trip to Africa. By then, the 49ers ostensibly will have completed a deal to send Alex Smith to the Chiefs, giving them plenty of salary-cap space to accommodate the trade and Boldin's $6 million cap figure.

News of the deal was first reported by The Baltimore Sun. The 49ers do not comment on transactions until they are complete. However, quarterback Colin Kaepernick, appearing on NFL Live, said he welcomed another weapon to the offense. "We'll be happy to take him," Kaepernick said of Boldin.

The trade, of course, sends Boldin from one Harbaugh-coached team to another. Boldin was a 49ers nemesis when he was the Cardinals from 2003-2009. And he made several huge catches in the Super Bowl - including the Ravens' first touchdown - in racking up 104 yards and a 17.3 yards-per-catch average. Over his career, he has caught 90 passes for 1,157 yards and eight touchdowns against the 49ers.

The 49ers, meanwhile, had a big question mark at the starting receiver spot opposite Michael Crabtree. Both Randy Moss and Ted Ginn are pending free agents who are not expected back while Mario Manningham and Kyle Williams are coming off of late-season ACL injuries.

The 49ers were expecting 15 picks in the upcoming draft. The 49ers had two sixth-round picks -- Miami's (12th overall in that round) and their own (31st). It's not yet know which pick will be heading to Baltimore.

-- Matt Barrows

About Comments

Reader comments on Sacbee.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Sacramento Bee. If you see an objectionable comment, click the "report abuse" button below it. We will delete comments containing inappropriate links, obscenities, hate speech, and personal attacks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. See more about comments here.

What You Should Know About Comments on Sacbee.com

Sacbee.com is happy to provide a forum for reader interaction, discussion, feedback and reaction to our stories. However, we reserve the right to delete inappropriate comments or ban users who can't play nice. (See our full terms of service here.)

Here are some rules of the road:

• Keep your comments civil. Don't insult one another or the subjects of our articles. If you think a comment violates our guidelines click the "report abuse" button to notify the moderators. Responding to the comment will only encourage bad behavior.

• Don't use profanities, vulgarities or hate speech. This is a general interest news site. Sometimes, there are children present. Don't say anything in a way you wouldn't want your own child to hear.

• Do not attack other users; focus your comments on issues, not individuals.

• Stay on topic. Only post comments relevant to the article at hand. If you want to discuss an issue with a specific user, click on his profile name and send him a direct message.

• Do not copy and paste outside material into the comment box.

• Don't repeat the same comment over and over. We heard you the first time.

• Do not use the commenting system for advertising. That's spam and it isn't allowed.

• Don't use all capital letters. That's akin to yelling and not appreciated by the audience.

You should also know that The Sacramento Bee does not screen comments before they are posted. You are more likely to see inappropriate comments before our staff does, so we ask that you click the "report abuse" button to submit those comments for moderator review. You also may notify us via email at feedback@sacbee.com. Note the headline on which the comment is made and tell us the profile name of the user who made the comment. Remember, comment moderation is subjective. You may find some material objectionable that we won't and vice versa.

If you submit a comment, the user name of your account will appear along with it. Users cannot remove their own comments once they have submitted them, but you may ask our staff to retract one of your comments by sending an email to feedback@sacbee.com. Again, make sure you note the headline on which the comment is made and tell us your profile name.

blog comments powered by Disqus

FOLLOW US | Get more from sacbee.com | Follow us on Twitter | Become a fan on Facebook | Get news in your inbox | View our mobile versions | e-edition: Print edition online | What our bloggers are saying

Please use the form below to submit your question. Because there is a 100-word limit for questions, a word counter is located directly beneath the box where you enter the your question.