# Erik Engle: Engel expects the 49ers and Trent Williams to rework the deal and stay together, thinks Williams retires after this season, doubts Monroe Freeling lasts to pick 27, believes Brandon Aiyuk is done in San Francisco with Washington the likely destination, predicts the 49ers compete for the NFC West and that whoever wins the division gets a first-round bye, and thinks Mac Jones could fetch a third-round pick or better.

**Claimed:** Mar 20, 2026
**Pundit:** Erik Engle — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/erik-engle
**Outlet:** Locked On 49ers (podcast) — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/locked-on-49ers-podcast
**How it reached us:** said on air, transcribed by us
**Original:** https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/pdrl.fm/f9f75c/lockedon.simplecastaudio.com/0a6076b9-74e2-4b01-846e-5cc0d0b8031c/episodes/2718ad03-9a93-48da-88ba-016ecfff25ef/audio/128/default.mp3?aid=rss_feed&awCollectionId=0a6076b9-74e2-4b01-846e-5cc0d0b8031c&awEpisodeId=2718ad03-9a93-48da-88ba-016ecfff25ef&feed=P83yLSb_

5 checkable claims — 3 trade and signing calls, 1 mock draft pick and 1 seeding, byes and home field — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing call.

It names 6 players and teams, each linked to their own record.

None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in.

> I think the biggest question mark about Monroe Freeling is is is he going to be available when the 40 pick at 27? And I I personally think that that answer is no.

*(their words, quoted for attribution)*

## The claims

- **Mac Jones to move**
  - Kind: Trade and Signing Calls · About: Mac Jones
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Brandon Aiyuk to move to Washington Commanders**
  - Kind: Trade and Signing Calls · About: Brandon Aiyuk, Washington Commanders
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Monroe Freeling to be picked “before No. 27 overall”**
  - Kind: Mock Draft Picks · About: Monroe Freeling
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **San Francisco 49ers to take the top seed**
  - Kind: Seeding, Byes and Home Field · About: San Francisco 49ers
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Trent Williams to move to San Francisco 49ers**
  - Kind: Trade and Signing Calls · About: Trent Williams, San Francisco 49ers
  - Verdict: not settled yet

## Who this take is about

- Mac Jones — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/mac-jones
- Brandon Aiyuk — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/brandon-aiyuk
- Washington Commanders — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/commanders
- Monroe Freeling — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/monroe-freeling
- San Francisco 49ers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/49ers
- Trent Williams — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/trent-williams

## What others said about the same people

- Parker Hurley on Khalid Kareem: Hurley predicts the 49ers will release Khalil Kareem when Nate Hobbs is activated and cut Brandin Cooks when C.J. West returns, while arguing Sebastian Valdez won't be the one let go and no cornerback will be cut. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/5a729417-69ee-493a-9bec-d905fd1a7082 (scored 0)
- Jordan Dajani on Washington Commanders: Dajani picks the Commanders to edge the Giants 21-20 on Thursday and the Chiefs to beat the Falcons 26-20 in Week 10. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/46f7646f-2c64-4827-a522-67975af79fb6 (scored 95.24)
- Tyler Sullivan on Washington Commanders: Sullivan takes the Commanders 24-21 over the Giants on Thursday night and calls for a Steelers upset of the Bengals, 27-24, in Week 10. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/1bb32676-c3b3-4b8e-8a03-b58396cf98bf (scored 100)
- John Breech on Washington Commanders: Breech picks the Commanders to upset the Giants on Thursday night, 24-17, and takes the Texans to beat the Browns 24-16 in Week 10 behind a pass rush that should batter Deshaun Watson. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/9fddc8e1-3823-4252-bdd7-f81ef11b1da3 (scored 90.48)
- Jordan Dajani on Washington Commanders: Dajani picked seven Week 10 games with final scores, including a Commanders upset of the Giants, Lions over the Patriots in Munich, Chiefs over the Falcons, Packers edging the Vikings, 49ers over the Cowboys, Bengals over the Steelers and Ravens over the Chargers. They also suggested Joe Burrow could win MVP this season. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/e2531f3a-2140-40ac-9831-5ff8224e090f (scored 95.24)
- Eva Geitheim on Washington Commanders: Geitheim picked the Commanders, Lions, Chiefs, Texans, Vikings, Jaguars, Colts, Panthers, Bills, Seahawks, Rams, 49ers, Bengals and Ravens in Week 10. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c011abef-0b18-41ad-acad-6a67dfbd41fd (scored 100)

## More trade and signing calls

The same kind of call, about other players and teams.

- Chris Clark on Nikko Remigio: Clark expects the Chiefs to bring back exclusive-rights receiver Nico (Remigio) and long snapper James Winchester, to re-sign JuJu Smith-Schuster as a cheap veteran fifth receiver, and not to bring back Hollywood Brown, Josh Dobbs-type depth, Gardner Minshew, Janarius Robinson or Mike Caliendo; they also say the Chiefs will not use a franchise tag and believes Bryan Cook won't return. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/99521265-d5c0-4db1-b2a0-fe77908ea0b3 (scored 0)
- Nate Gosney on Daiyan Henley: After the Broncos rescinded the trade, Gosney expects Daiyan Henley to remain with the Chargers for the rest of the 2026 season, but believes the awkward fallout has effectively killed any chance of them signing a new contract with Los Angeles after the season. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/60272861-4ad0-4749-b36a-dcdf09b9213f (scored 0)
- Logan Lazarczyk on Kirk Cousins: Ahead of the trade deadline, they float three Raiders moves: shipping Kirk Cousins to Minnesota if the Vikings offer a second-round pick, selling Maxx Crosby to Dallas for a first-rounder plus, and acquiring Jaguars receiver Brian Thomas Jr. for a second- or third-round pick. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/d0fd408a-7dcd-4e50-ac62-6b4510a8a800 (scored 100)
- Logan Lazarczyk on Kirk Cousins: Lazarczyk expects the Raiders to be sellers before the trade deadline, suggesting Kirk Cousins could be dealt back to the Vikings and that benched interior lineman Jackson Powers-Johnson is a prime candidate to be traded somewhere. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/fda03952-2ea6-4919-8114-0ebb127478d1 (scored 100)
- Patricia Traina on J.J. McCarthy: Traina expects defensive tackle to be a top need for the Giants in next year's draft, and suggests the Giants could trade J.J. McCarthy next offseason — or keep both them and Jaxson Dart if the return isn't good enough. They also expect Dart to make a full recovery. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b638ed13-01ca-4ea6-9384-ec7130f912c1 (scored 100)
- Michael David Smith on Keenan Allen: Smith suggests the Colts are likely to grant Josh Downs' trade request given their contract situation and their recent sell-off, and that they could also try to trade Keenan Allen. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/52d7108f-f754-44e8-9bf3-cc3336b4e5f7 (scored 100)

---

Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages.

Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology

We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us:
https://missedtakes.co/corrections?pundit=erik-engle