49ers land Keenan Allen for a sixth-round pick, ESPN reports

The San Francisco 49ers acquired veteran wide receiver Keenan Allen from the Indianapolis Colts on Tuesday, sending a sixth-round pick in the 2027 draft to Indianapolis hours before the NFL trade deadline, ESPN reported, citing NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and ESPN's Adam Schefter. For the price of a late pick, the NFC-leading Niners get a six-time Pro Bowler and one of the most productive pass catchers of his generation for a playoff push.

The move is about need as much as talent. San Francisco is 7-1, but its receiver room has been hit by injuries since training camp, when Ricky Pearsall went on injured reserve after knee surgery. The team has since played games without Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel, Demarcus Robinson, De'Zhaun Stribling and Christian Kirk. Evans, the No. 1 option, has not played since leaving a Week 6 win over the Commanders with Achilles tendinitis, Pro Football Rumors reported, and Kirk has already been on injured reserve twice. Samuel has missed three straight games with a hamstring injury, and Stribling went on injured reserve with an ankle sprain after Week 1.

That has left quarterback Brock Purdy without a reliable group of targets for much of the season. Second-year receiver Jordan Watkins has emerged in recent weeks, including a four-catch, 86-yard, one-touchdown game against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday. Robinson returned from injured reserve last week, and Samuel is set to return to practice on Wednesday. With Allen added, the Niners could line up Robinson, Watkins, Samuel and Allen as their top four receivers against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.

Allen, 34, fits the profile of an offense that leans on experience. According to ESPN Research, San Francisco has the most offensive snaps (2,943) and offensive touchdowns (25) from players 30 or older this season. Of the five players 33 or older with 300-plus receiving yards this season, the Niners will now have three: Allen, Evans and tight end George Kittle.

The trade is also a homecoming. Allen played college football at nearby Cal before spending most of his 14-year NFL career with the Chargers, where he earned all six of his Pro Bowl selections and put together five 100-catch seasons. He became the Chargers' franchise leader in receptions during an 81-catch 2025 season, but the team let him walk in free agency, and he signed with the Colts in mid-August.

Indianapolis did not get much from the partnership on the field. Allen averaged a career-low 8.8 yards per catch over eight games in a struggling Colts passing offense, though his 40 receptions still led the team. The rebuilding Colts have now traded three veterans in recent weeks: Allen, star guard Quenton Nelson and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, whom they also sent to San Francisco on Oct. 27. It is the second trade between the two clubs in three weeks.

For Allen, the move puts history within reach. He has 1,095 career receptions, and he is seven catches short of passing Cris Carter on the all-time list, ESPN reported. Insider Jordan Schultz reported that Allen had hoped to join a contender before the deadline, according to Pro Football Rumors, and he now lands with the conference leader.

The deal caps a busy deadline across the league. Earlier on Tuesday the Jacksonville Jaguars made one of the biggest moves of the window, trading a 2027 first-round pick for Eagles defensive tackle Jordan Davis. San Francisco's approach was cheaper and narrower: buy a proven pass catcher to bridge the gap until Evans and Stribling return.

The Niners will need to make a corresponding roster move to create a spot for Allen. If he is cleared to play Sunday, he will face the Cowboys for the second week in a row, after catching four passes for 26 yards against Dallas in Week 9 with Indianapolis. More deadline coverage is in our Sports Sector.