Not only did the Broncos manage to withstand an 11th-hour 49ers push for Dre Greenlaw, the AFC West team appears to have won out for the talented linebacker despite submitting a lesser offer. Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch trekked to Greenlaw’s Texas home to convince the longtime Fred Warner wingman to stay, and the San Francisco Chronicle’s Eric Branch notes this mid-March meeting involved the team topping the Broncos’ offer. It is not known if San Francisco beat Denver’s overall number ($31.5MM) or guarantee at signing ($11.5MM), but Branch points to Greenlaw’s injury history keeping the 49ers from a substantial effort to retain the six-year veteran, who was on the team’s radar for a third contract. Greenlaw, 27, missed most of the 2021 season with a groin injury and played only a handful of snaps after suffering an Achilles tear in the first half of Super Bowl LVIII.
The Broncos will bet on Greenlaw and ex-49ers teammate Talanoa Hufanga returning to full strength, while the 49ers have Dee Winters — a 2023 sixth-round pick who started 10 games last season — in place as the top internal option to complement Warner. The draft could change this equation, but the 49ers have stood down on the veteran front after their regrettable De’Vondre Campbell stopgap investment in 2024.
Here is the latest from the NFC West:
- Not on the level of Greenlaw’s departure, Laken Tomlinson‘s Texans defection still leaves the Seahawks with a guard need once again. The team hosted Teven Jenkins, Lucas Patrick, and John Schneider also said (via ESPN.com’s Brady Henderson) a meeting with Jaguars RFA Cole Van Lanen occurred. No offer sheet emerged for Van Lanen, who has three career starts. The Jags gave Van Lanen the low-end RFA tender ($3.26MM). Seattle still has RG starter Anthony Bradford contracted, but Schneider said no veteran addition would be likely until after the draft. That is when Tomlinson arrived last year, but the draft will be a place to look here for the Seahawks.
- Cooper Kupp‘s three-year, $45MM Seahawks deal features an important 2026 date. The team guaranteed the former All-Pro receiver $17.5MM at signing, but $26.5MM in total. Kupp will see the remaining $9MM shift from an injury guarantee to a full guarantee on Day 5 of the ’26 league year, Cards Wire’s Howard Balzer notes. Seattle could escape the Kupp contract, should the homecoming not prove a fit, for $8MM in 2026 dead money (due to signing bonus proration).
- Additionally,…