Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports


49ers’ Dre Greenlaw recovering from finger procedure, hopes to be a more involved blitzer under Steve Wilks

May 25, 2023 at 2:42 PM--



Dre Greenlaw underwent a minor procedure after last season on his finger. The San Francisco 49ers linebacker is still working his way through the recovery process. That's why he's not with his teammates during organized team activities (OTAs).

"Yeah, nothing major," Greenlaw said Thursday on KNBR's Papa & Lund show. "Just a little clean up in the thumb. [It] was giving me some problems, just whenever I was punching at the ball or whenever I had to use my hands on O-linemen. [My] finger was just really jammed up, so I just had to get it cleaned up and fixed.

"It's going really well right now, so I'm just waiting, I guess. Now, I think they're going to keep me out of OTAs for the most part, just because you don't want any setbacks right now. But it's going really well."

Once healthy, Greenlaw expects to hit the practice field and absorb everything his new defensive coordinator, Steve Wilks, has to teach him. Wilks is the linebacker's third defensive coordinator since the 49ers made him a fifth-round draft pick in 2019.

Greenlaw only has two career sacks, the last of which came in 2020. Does he expect to be more involved as a blitzer on Wilks' defense?

"I do hope so," Greenlaw said. "I talked to him as well, and just based off what we've been doing, there's going to be a lot of ways that he's going to be able to just match us up on running backs. And whether he's calling it, whether we're hug-rushing the running back, or whatever it is that he's calling, but he's definitely going to be sending us a lot more.

"So that should be fun. So hopefully, we can get some more sacks this year, for sure."

Wilks replaces DeMeco Ryans, who left to be the head coach of the Houston Texans. While the new defensive coordinator is expected to tweak things to his liking, no one expects massive changes on the horizon. After all, the 49ers owned the top-ranked defense in the NFL last season.

"It's not like he wants to change a lot of things," Greenlaw said. "He loves the way that we play, the will of the way that we play, and the scheme that we had last year. I think it's going to be awesome for him to just mix his own [style] in there and make us more aggressive in different situations, and that's just going to be fun to add to the pot.

"So, it's been a great change so far. As far as just him, just being himself, being a great leader that he is. It's going to be fun to work with him."

The 49ers added Javon Hargrave to the defensive line in front of Greenlaw. He joins a group that already included Arik Armstead and the NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Nick Bosa.

"It's going to be huge," Greenlaw said. "... Just having a guy like him that can move people, that's aggressive, it's going to help everybody out. Not just me, but it's going to help the guys behind me as well because I just think it just all works together.

"So it's going to be fun. You already got the guys that we've had before, like Arik, Bosa, all those guys up front. So it's going to be fun to add in a guy with some experience as well."

You can listen to the entire conversation with Greenlaw below.



Related News


Nobody's perfect. Did you find a mistake in this article?
Report it.



Facebook Comments



More San Francisco 49ers News



49ers' Trey Lance finally past finger injury that held him back

By Rohan Chakravarthi
May 23

The San Francisco 49ers concluded their second day of organized team activities(OTAs) on Tuesday, which was the first practice open to media, where quarterbacks Trey Lance, Brock Purdy, and Sam Darnold all spoke with the media following an exciting return to the practice field. Lance took all of the first-team reps, while Darnold had all of the second-team reps, although head coach Kyle Shanahan shared that the team will likely even them out as OTAs continue along. Following practice, Lance spoke with the media, detailing his recent rehab process and mindset heading into his third NFL season, but an emphasis was placed on the finger injury that the quarterback sustained during his rookie season that proved to be a bigger hindrance than many realized at the



Podcast: 49ers OTAs Day 1 recap

By Rohan Chakravarthi
May 24

Rohan Chakravarthi and Jessie Naylor break down Day 1 of the San Francisco 49ers OTAs that was available to media. The audio for the show is embedded above, while the video is available below. You can listen to "The Rohan Chakravarthi Show" from our dedicated podcast page, on



Kyle Shanahan feels "really fortunate" with 49ers' QB room

By David Bonilla
May 24

Kyle Shanahan praises his quarterback room every year. Last season, the San Francisco 49ers went through three starting quarterbacks and still made it to the NFC Championship Game. Trey Lance was the Week 1 starter but suffered a season-ending ankle injury during his second game. Eleven weeks later, Jimmy Garoppolo sustained a broken foot. That opened the door for rookie Brock Purdy to show his coaches and the NFL world that he belonged, despite being the last overall pick in the draft. Purdy guided the 49ers to eight consecutive wins before suffering a severe injury in that NFC title game matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles. Two of the quarterbacks from last season—Lance and Purdy—remain. Both are just 23 years old. They are joined by Sam



5 position battles to watch for during 49ers OTAs

By Rohan Chakravarthi
May 24

The San Francisco 49ers entered the offseason with several questions after key figures, such as Jimmie Ward, Mike McGlinchey, Samson Ebukam, and Charles Omenihu, departed in free agency, creating the possibility for position battles in organized team activities(OTAs) and training camp. While several of the starting spots are solidified, there are still a few position battles to watch, as well as depth questions that could allow younger players to compete and take 53-man roster spots at the end of the offseason. Let's break down some of those battles to watch and how they could play out for the 49ers, outside of the obvious competition at


Featured

Trending News

Share 49ersWebzone