49ers keep bolstering defense, reportedly adding DT Maliek Collins
The San Francisco 49ers continued to beef up their defense Wednesday, trading for Houston Texans defensive tackle Maliek Collins, published reports said.
ESPN and the Associated Press reported the 49ers had traded a seventh-round draft pick tp acquire Collins. The trade was reportedly pending a physical.
Collins is the latest addition made by the 49ers to their revamped defensive line after San Francisco had previously agreed to deals with free agent defensive ends Leonard Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos, and defensive tackle Jordan Elliott, according to several sources speaking on condition of anonymity because those deals hadn't been signed.
ESPN reporter Adam Schechter also said that former All-Pro Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Eric Kendricks was signing a one-year deal with the 49ers, but later reported that Kendricks decided to go to the Dallas Cowboys instead, according to sources.
San Francisco needed reinforcements on the line with Chase Young, Clelin Ferrell, Javon Kinlaw and Randy Gregory all hitting free agency and Arik Armstead, the team's longest-tenured player, set to be released this week in a cost-cutting move.
Collins, who turns 29 next month, is owed base salaries of $8 million and $9.5 million the next two seasons. Houston will take a $10 million dead cap hit for the trade to account for a signing bonus paid when he got an extension last year.
Collins matched a career high with five sacks last season when he ranked 12th among all defensive tackles in ESPN's pass rush win rate metric. He had 11 sacks, 26 tackles for loss and 35 quarterback hits the past three seasons for the Texans.
Collins played his first four seasons in Dallas and in 2020 for the Raiders before joining the Texans.