49ers Look to Have Found their Replacement for Dre Greenlaw

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Dee Winters of the San Francisco 49ers

One of the biggest position battles for the San Francisco 49ers is going to be the WILL linebacker position. With Dre Greenlaw signing with the Broncos, the Niners must see an improvement in the linebacker room. The team drafted Nick Martin in the third round of the draft, but there’s a different player who’s stepping up for San Francisco. That thumper is third-year linebacker, Dee Winters.

Dee Winters’ Impression at 49ers Training Camp

ESPN’s Nick Wagoner broke down the 49ers’ Monday practice and reported that Winters caught an interception and had this to say about his most recent practice.

“Dee Winters had the hit of the day, dropping a shoulder on RB Isaac Guerendo early in practice. Winters also flashed his closing speed, later chasing down Guerendo on a sweep to the sideline.”

Based on this and some other reports, it’s become clear that Winters is flashing. It appears to be his spot to lose in training camp and throughout the season, and he’s continuing to justify why he is the best option. Pair that with how he finished last year once he got an opportunity, and it makes sense why he’s getting so much hype.

Fred Warner’s Praise

Winters is doing more than showing his skill set to the reporters. Star linebacker Fred Warner gave the up-and-coming player some love a while back and explained why he thinks he’s ready to start alongside him.

“I’ve seen a lot of growth, honestly,” Warner said Tuesday. “I’ve seen a guy who’s ready to take that next step. Dee has flashed in a big way through his first two seasons. And I think year three is that year where it’s like ‘Man, I know the system, I know what I need to do in the offseason, and now it’s time for me to take control and really put it on tape. And so I’m excited for Dee, really. I think he had a great OTAs. I know he’s been working his tail off to be ready for training camp, and so I’m excited to see what he’s gonna do.”

Getting praise like this from arguably the best linebacker in football speaks volumes. Winters has flashed over his first two years, but the opportunity was never there with Dre Greenlaw cemented in a starting spot. Last year, Winters showed that he should have been the fill-in while Greenlaw was coming back from his Achilles injury. Now, it seems like the TCU alum looks to be ready to make the biggest impact in his pro football career.

49ers Player Development

Under Kyle Shanahan, the 49ers have proven to be one of the better NFL teams at developing talent. So many day two and three picks have panned out and been contributors. Basically, the whole linebacker room has played out that way for San Francisco. It was Kwon Alexander and Fred Warner, then Greenlaw took over Kwon’s spot, and now Winters looks to be next in line.

Expect to see number 53 flying around, making sideline-to-sideline plays this next season. His time is now.

Matthew Kaimer is a sports writer covering the MLB for heavy.com. He has worked for Heavy since 2023 and has over 5 years experience covering the MLB and San Diego Padres through his social media outlet “Friar Talk.” More about Matthew Kaimer