The San Francisco 49ers are expected to be busy this offseason as they look to bounce back from a disappointing 2024 season. On the docket for 49ers general manager John Lynch is the impending contract extension for starting quarterback Brock Purdy and finding a trade partner for veteran wide receiver Deebo Samuel.
In addition to those two items, the 49ers must decide which players from last season they want to re-sign. One of those players is veteran linebacker Dre Greenlaw, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent next month.
According to Matt Barrows of The Athletic, Lynch told reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine on Wednesday that San Francisco is “very interested in having Dre” back and emphasized “very” when mentioning the veteran defender.
Greenlaw made his 2024 debut in Week 15 against the Los Angeles Rams after suffering a torn ACL in Super LVIII. The veteran linebacker played 30 defensive snaps against the Rams and only four in Week 16 before the 49ers shut him down for the remainder of the season.
Before suffering the torn ACL, the 27-year-old linebacker was coming into his own as one of the better linebackers in the league. In 2022 and 2023, Greenlaw produced back-to-back 100-plus combined tackle seasons.
Greenlaw has spent six years with the organization after being taken in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL Draft.
When healthy, Greenlaw is the perfect complement to Fred Warner in the linebacker unit, giving San Francisco one of the better LB duos. With the 49ers having safety Talanoa Hufanga and cornerback Charvarius Ward set to hit free agency, San Francisco can’t afford to let Greenlaw walk out the door.
Lynch also told reporters at the scouting combine this week that they’ve had discussions with the veteran linebacker and hope to come to an agreement. That said, we’ll ultimately see what the 49ers do this offseason as they have a lot of decisions to make, which includes getting this roster younger.