It was a sad day for San Francisco 49ers fans when the news broke that linebacker Dre Greenlaw was not returning to the Bay Area but would sign a three-year, $35 million deal with the Denver Broncos.
General manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan made a final plea to the linebacker, but Greenlaw opted for a change of scenery.
And so, while the Niners wage a camp battle between Dee Winters and rookie Nick Martin to step into Greenlaw's vacated position next to All-Pro Fred Warner, there is a lot of buzz surrounding the early days of the former Arkansas Razorback's time in Denver.
Frankly, it should come as no surprise to 49ers fans what fans and coaches for the Broncos are saying about Greenlaw.
Denver's head coach, Sean Payton, might have the best thing to say about the linebacker. Payton observed that once the pads came on at Broncos practice that Greenlaw "plays like Mike Tyson," a comparison that, while relatively original, likely rings true for Niners fans.
Payton went on to elaborate on that statement, noting about Greenlaw:
"Tough, he's physical. He's built that way. There's not a lot of leaky yardage. Some guys [allow that]. He's a knock-back tackler. They stop where he hits them. There's an intensity to how he plays. He's one of those players that if you put the film on and didn't say anything, at some point early, you'd ask, 'Who is this guy?'"
Surely, this sounds like a player whom the 49ers knew they had over the course of Greenlaw's six seasons in San Francisco. The question was never whether the linebacker could do the job they asked of him, but health was becoming a concern, as he missed basically two full seasons (2021 and 2024) of those six.
It is good to hear that Greenlaw appears to be back to his old self after a tumultuous 2024 campaign. He'll be back at Levi's Stadium on Aug. 9 when the Broncos open their preseason slate by matching up against the Niners.
