Social media posts hint at Dre Greenlaw’s potential 49ers departure

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

San Francisco 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw remains under contract until March, after which he becomes a free agent. While his future with the 49ers is uncertain, a recent social media post has fueled speculation that Greenlaw may be ready for a fresh start with another NFL team in 2025.

The post, shared by Sydney Warner, wife of the linebacker Fred Warnerhighlighted a surprise reunion for Greenlaw’s fiancee, Mikaela Gallagher (h/t Taylor Wirth of NBC Sports Bay Area). Hinting at a possible goodbye, its caption read: “POV: your team didn’t make the playoffs and NFL free agency takes your best friend to another team and we’re all seriously sick.”

The cryptic post raises questions about whether the 49ers have expressed concerns to Greenlaw about keeping him. Despite this, general manager John Lynch recently shared his desire to keep Greenlaw in red and gold.

“We love Dre and we’re interested in keeping him here for a long time,” Lynch said. “He’s a special player, so we’ll let that take care of itself as time goes on here.”

Head coach Kyle Shanahan expressed similar sentiments while discussing Greenlaw and another free-agent-to-be, safety Talanoa Hufanga.

“Those are two of the better players I’ve been around and two of the better players on our team and two of the main reasons we’ve had the success here that we’ve had,” Shanahan said recently. “Hopefully we can do everything we can to figure out how to keep them here because they’re as many examples of 49ers as any I could think of.”

Greenlaw spent most of the 2024 season on injured reserve as he recovered from a torn Achilles. He returned briefly for two games, but another setback in the second contest prompted the 49ers to shut down the linebacker for the final two matchups of the season.

San Francisco made Greenlaw a fifth-round draft pick out of Arkansas in 2019. Over his six seasons, he has accumulated 455 tackles (18 for a loss), three interceptions, one touchdown, 3.5 sacks, 14 passes defensed, two forced fumbles fumbles, and two fumble recoveries that established themselves as a valuable part of the team.

The 49ers finished the season with a disappointing 6-11 record, marking their first playoff absence since 2020. Heading into the offseason, the team faces uncertainty with the expected contract extension for the quarterback Brock Purdywhich will likely force some tough roster decisions.