Dealt a strange blow when Dre Greenlaw suffered an Achilles tear while trotting onto the field during Super Bowl LVIII’s first half, the 49ers attempted multiple insurance measures. The Eric Kendricks plan did not pan out, leading De’Vondre Campbell to San Francisco.
The eight-year veteran will be set to team with Fred Warner in the event Greenlaw’s rehab does not have him ready to play by Week 1. Although Greenlaw underwent surgery shortly after the Super Bowl, the recent LB pursuit would suggest the 49ers are concerned the longtime Warner sidekick will not be ready in time to start the season.
John Lynch said at this week’s owners meetings (via NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco) Greenlaw is aiming to be back on time, but the eighth-year GM indicated this also may lead to a situation in which the reserve/PUP list is needed.
Greenlaw will almost definitely begin training camp on the active/PUP list, but a shift to the reserve/PUP list would sideline him for at least four games. Early October would represent a near-eight-month recovery timetable. While some players have beaten that — including ex-49ers wideout Michael Crabtree back in 2013 — caution would make sense on the 49ers’ part.
Kendricks backed out of a 49ers agreement to sign with the Cowboys. The longtime Vikings linebacker reunited with new Cowboys DC Mike Zimmer, but the 49ers offered him a better deal than the one-year, $3MM ($2.5MM guaranteed) contract he inked with Dallas. Kendricks said the 49ers wanted him to start the season in Greenlaw’s place, a three-down role, before likely moving to a part-time gig once the regular starter came back. Campbell signed a one-year, $5MM contract ($4.56MM guaranteed) soon after Kendricks backtracked.
“I didn’t want to be in a situation where I was playing in a position all year and then had to potentially switch to another position — rotating in and out,” Kendricks said on the Bussin’ With Boys podcast (via the San Francisco Chronicle’s Eric Branch). “I wanted to be on the field. I wanted to make a difference. I wanted to make an impact, and that’s why, ultimately, I had to make a change for myself.”
Kendricks joined a team with a greater need for a full-time linebacker, as Greenlaw should be expected to return at some point during the season’s first half. Crabtree went down in late May 2013 and returned in early December. The 49ers could opt to leave Greenlaw off the PUP list and go week to week, but their Kendricks communications suggest a Warner-Campbell setup at linebacker to start the year. Greenlaw is going into his age-27 season. Greenlaw’s two-year, $16.4MM contract expires after the 2024 slate, raising the stakes for the former fifth-round pick to recover and play well this season.
So one guy in Warner who has lost at least a step but still competes and one guy in Campbell who has lost several steps and no longer competes. Good luck with that.
Campbell I cannot comment on, because he was a speed guy that flashed earlier in his career, and he has been slowed down by injuries. Also, some have questioned his effort level the past few seasons, so by all accounts, you’re right it is a risky gamble. Still, there went very many quality veteran options available at a modest price, and that player also willing to take a backseat once Greenlaw gets healthy. The 49ers rarely ever line up with 3 LBs, so that player would see a significant drop in their usage once Greenlaw returns. That has proven to be a very difficult sell already for most seasons, and was still difficult even though there was an open spot for likely 4 starts and then a role as a rotation sub.
Now, in terms of Fred Warner, he is still by far one of the best MLBs in the league right there with RoQuan Smith…
He hasn’t showed hardly any signs of slowing down while still taking on a ton of responsibility and always flying around the field making plays for a top level defense and doing it a higher level than almost all other MLBs.
Also, there’s a big difference in playing through nagging injuries towards the middle and end of a season and losing a step. Plus, in the Super Bowl everything was perfectly fine before Greenlaw went out, and Warner even held his own for awhile basically having to do all the difficult middle work by hisself. Then, yeah he eventually wore down, because he had to start making up for playing alongside a player that primarily has only lined up on ST his entire career.
Yes, the 49ers should have been better prepared from a depth perspective, but the Kendricks situation is a great inside look into why it’s difficult to attract quality depth for a team like the 49ers when player’s already know they’re barely going to see the field.
Warner and Greenlaw are easily a top3 MLB tandem in the NFL, and some would make the argument they are the top duo. They had Al-Shaiir as an excellent 3rd LB and depth option, but they couldn’t afford to keep him and he wanted a chance to start elsewhere.
The 49ers tried later on in the draft to bring in Graham and Winters, and they showed some flashes in camp and during the pre-season, but they were latter round picks that needed to learn the system over a full year.
I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see the 49ers try to target a MLB a little earlier this year, likely near the end of the 3rd or in the 4th Round, and he will likely compete with Winters and Graham as the heir apparent to Greenlaw if they can’t get a deal worked out.