Things are quickly unraveling for the San Francisco 49ers, and the biggest question remaining is how lasting the damage will be.
At 6-8, the 49ers are dead last in the NFC West, barely clinging to any hopes of a playoff berth. In all likelihood, they’ll miss the postseason for the first time since 2020, and with a high amount of expected roster turnover, it’s hard to say whether San Francisco will contend in years to come.
The 49ers’ once-vaunted defense has been mediocre at best this season, and one might be inclined to attribute that to injuries. Nick Bosa has missed several games, Fred Warner has played through a fractured ankle for three months, and one other superstar only showed up last week.
Dre Greenlaw, a massive contributor to the 49ers’ Super Bowl run a season ago, made his return in the 49ers’ 12-6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday. But just as soon as he came back, Greenlaw could soon be on his way out the door.
Recently, Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report predicted that Greenlaw would sign with the Denver Broncos, an up-and-coming team in the AFC West, in this spring’s free-agency window.
“The Broncos have to be considered the breakout unit of the 2024 season,” Ballentine said. “A lot of that is due to a group of pass-rushers that took a step forward and a strong secondary. The middle of the defense could still use more juice.”
“Dre Greenlaw has missed most of this season, but made his return to the Niners lineup (on Thursday). He should be even better next season with more time to recover from the torn Achilles he suffered last postseason.”
Greenlaw, 27, has 427 total tackles and 18 tackles for loss in his six-year career. His masterpiece came against the Green Bay Packers in last year’s playoffs, when he had two of his five career interceptions, regular season and postseason combined, including the game-sealing pick on the final drive.
Widely regarded as one of the league’s most talented linebackers when healthy, Greenlaw would be a big loss for the 49ers. But he’s likely due for a pay raise on the two-year, $16.4 million deal San Francisco gave him in 2023, so it’s uncertain they’ll front the cost to keep him in town.
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