49ers Notebook: ‘We’re going to find out who wants to be here’; Dre Greenlaw’s return sparks team; Purdy’s costly INT; Rams RB talks a little trash after win

Underneath the frustration of their rather awful 12-6 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night, the San Francisco 49ers experienced one of the best moments of their forgettable 2024 season -- the return of linebacker Dre Greenlaw from the torn Achilles that kept him on the sidelines since Super Bowl LVIII.

It's been clear all season how much the 49ers' defense has missed Greenlaw, as they've never quite been able to compensate for his absence. Greenlaw's value was even more obvious on Thursday night, as he played with his trademark intensity, fired up his teammates, and racked up eight tackles before leaving the game due to discomfort in his knee, while one of the players brought in to help fill in for Greenlaw -- linebacker De'Vondre Campbell -- decided for whatever reason to quit on the team in the middle of the game.

But, based on Thursday night, the 49ers won't miss Campbell much if Greenlaw remains healthy enough to play the rest of the season.

"He was unbelievable tonight," head coach Kyle Shanahan said.

Greenlaw spoke with reporters after the game and gave a positive evaluation of his condition, saying that even though his knee was sore ("My knee didn't feel right, so everything got a little tight. I just have to make sure I use precautions," Greenlaw said), his Achilles felt fine. Fortunately, Greenlaw will have some extra time to recuperate before the 49ers take the field against the Dolphins in Miami on December 22.

"I'm sore," Greenlaw said. "I played a lot of plays. I'm sore. So it was expected. Everything I feel is expected. Knee's sore, same side as the surgery, so everything's probably a little tighter. (I) get 10 days luckily into the next game. So just get the range of motion in it, get the strength back in it and get the confidence back in it, and it'll be good."

Not being able to play for 13 games was a frustrating experience for Greenlaw, who made it very clear he was happy to get back on the field after sitting out for over 300 days (" If I was healthy, I'd play another game tomorrow," Greenlaw said). When asked what he missed the most, Greenlaw responded with exactly the type of answer one might expect coming from a player of his intensity.

"I miss just letting my -- I guess -- anger and frustration out," Greenlaw said. "I mean, I just like going to hit people sometimes. It lets a lot of frustration out. Just makes me feel better."

Greenlaw was also happy to be back in Levi's Stadium with 49ers fans, and to be once again playing alongside his friend and fellow linebacker Fred Warner.

"I miss everything about it," Greenlaw said. "The fans, going out there in Levi's, just playing next to Fred, just that feeling of playing next to him, everything about it."

Warner and Greenlaw's other teammates missed him as well, as we'll dive into in this version of 49ers Notebook. We'll also have some candid words from defensive end Nick Bosa about what the next three weeks will mean, as well as quarterback Brock Purdy on the struggles of the offense and his costly late-game interception that helped permanently swing Thursday night's game in favor of the Rams. And it also seems like the next round of trash talk has emerged in a rivalry that has seen more of its share over the years.

So, without further ado...

Sight for sore eyes

What does Greenlaw mean to the 49ers? Look no further than the quotes they gave about him after the game for the answer to that question.

Greenlaw's teammates gushed over his return, starting with Warner, who certainly was among the happiest 49ers players to see number 57 back in the lineup.

"It meant everything," linebacker Fred Warner said after the loss. "We shared a moment before we went out and through the tunnel. Everything that he's gone through and his journey with rehab and thinking about that moment in the Super Bowl and being able to finally go out there and be with him again, it meant everything. He looked like Dre Greenlaw from the moment we started."

Bosa had even kinder words for Greenlaw, calling him his favorite teammate of all time.

"It was great to see him," Bosa said. "I love having him. He's probably my favorite teammate to ever play with, college and pros. He's an absolute dog and he was showing it. To come after a year of not playing and look like that, it's pretty impressive."

But no one was more eloquent in their praise of Greenlaw than tight end George Kittle, who told reporters he admired Greenlaw's "desire to play football in the most violent way possible" before explaining why he's a rare commodity in the National Football League.

"There are not many people that do that. I don't think there's another person on the roster in the NFL that plays the game that he does," Kittle said. "He is an old soul. He's a guy who could play in the '90s and 2000s, and I absolutely love everything about what he does in every snap, the energy that he brings. He could be on the other side of the damn field and they could have a screen away from him, and he's going to somehow end up in the film, somehow on top of the pile, screaming and hyping up everybody around him. And when you have people like that on your team, it gets everybody going.

"He is that player for us. He makes Fred play better. He makes Huf (safety Talanoa Hufanga) play better. He makes Bosa play better. And when you feel that out there, our defense is so much better with a guy like Dre Greenlaw. And he inspires our offense. He's an incredible, one-of-one person."

The 2024 season will end with plenty of "what-ifs" for the 49ers, none of them bigger than what the defense would have looked like if Greenlaw had been healthy and available the entire season. But they'll at least be able to head into the offseason knowing his Achilles doesn't appear to be standing in the way of him returning to his old self -- which is a big deal, considering the fact he'll be up for a new contract in the months ahead.

"Dre Greenlaw is one of my favorite football players to ever watch," Kittle said. "The energy that he plays with, the violence that he plays with on every single snap, and you can just tell the energy that he brings to the entire defense and the entire team is infectious. It's unique, it's one of a kind, and he is an absolute unicorn of a football player, and it was just so fun to see him have the opportunity to play again tonight."

What's next for the 49ers?

While the 49ers aren't technically eliminated from postseason contention, the loss to the Rams made it extremely likely they won't make the cut this year. So where does the team go from here? What will they have to play for over their next three games?

For starters, the 49ers will be to create some momentum heading into the offseason, while also learning about which players are serious about being part of what the team is doing going forward.

"We're going to find out who wants to be here the next few weeks," Bosa said Thursday. "Obviously (playoff chances are) slim. The focus is to win games and put our best out there."

It's been a rough season for the 49ers, one that has been filled with awful off-field developments such as the preseason shooting of wide receiver Ricky Pearsall and family tragedies involving cornerback Charvarius Ward and left tackle Trent Williams. On top of that, there's been a slew of injuries to the team's top players, and the current demoralizing four-week stretch of games that included Thursday night's loss to the Rams and blowout road losses to the Buffalo Bills and Green Bay Packers. The final three games (against the Dolphins, Detroit Lions and Arizona Cardinals) will provide a good litmus test for what Bosa wants to see from his teammates.

"That's kind of what the message is now, and we're going to find out who wants to be a Niner," Bosa said.

With Bosa himself being a player who has dealt with injury, there remains a possibility the 49ers could shut him down if there isn't a postseason left to play for. Thursday night marked his return from a hip/oblique issue that kept him sidelined for multiple games, but if he has his way, he'll be out on the field the rest of the year.

"I think if you're healthy you should play, and I think momentum created in the next few games could be really big for the offseason," Bosa said.

Big mistake

Despite struggling through most of the game against the Rams, the 49ers' offense looked like it was finding a groove late in the fourth quarter as they were in the middle of a drive that seemed headed towards at least a field goal or possibly a touchdown. But on a 2nd-and-11 from the Rams' 34-yard line, 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy launched a pass towards the end zone that sailed over the head of wide receiver Jauan Jennings and into the arms of cornerback Darious Williams for an interception.

The Rams took possession with just over five minutes remaining on the clock after the interception and were able to drive the other direction for a field goal and a 12-6 lead, while eating up most of the time remaining in the game.

What happened on the play? Purdy gave his viewpoint to reporters after the game.

"We had a double move on with J.J. on the outside," Purdy said. "I thought we had the right look with the corner off and thought we were going to get him and just in that moment trying to be aggressive and give J.J. a shot and when I let the ball go, couldn't see the whole release of him at the top of his route. But looking back on it, second-and-11, just be smart, try to check the ball down when I can't see where he is at. So, just got to learn from it."

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said, "We were hoping for man coverage. It was single safety, and you can't tell whether it's off man or bump. So the guys stuttered. Jauan ran a stutter go and the guy buckled his feet a little bit. And so Brock threw it up and tried to give Juwan a chance. As Juwan was exiting, he ran into him a little bit, which slowed Juwan down, and then there was only a corner there. So it was an unfortunate play."

Williams told reporters he was ready for what Purdy did based on what he had seen on film.

"He likes to run curl pumps, but I think the biggest thing is we just didn't really know when it was going to come," Williams said. "I was able to be patient on it. I didn't think he was going to throw it but he threw it up and I was ready to make a play."

Both teams had to deal with wet weather at times during the game, but Purdy took the blame on himself for the offense's failure to score more than six points.

"I think we had ops for sure across the board," Purdy said. "The weather was the weather in the first half, but even with that, I still think there was some ops for us to convert on third down and move the chains. And then in the second half as well, there were drives out there where it's like we could've stayed on the field. For myself, I had to be better for this team and didn't play my best tonight. Got to watch the film and see what happened and where my mindset was at with each play. But I just feel like I had a lot of plays left out there that I could have made for our team.

"I thought the defense and special teams played so good. And that's what's hurting me is I just feel like I failed the team. I could have been better for our offense and we could have put up more points. But, Rams are a good team overall, but more than anything for the way that we play on offense and our standard I could have been better for sure."

Bragging rights

For at least the time being, the 49ers-Rams rivalry has swung back in the direciton of the Rams, which meant it was their turn to trash talk on Thursday night.

Of course, some of it came from the Rams' social media team, who trolled the 49ers with an image showing the boombox from their famous pregame boombox ritual in the trash.

But running back Kyren Williams, who ran for over 100 yards in the win over the 49ers, had his own message after the game.

The Rams have won the last three over the 49ers dating back to the 2023 season. But last year's win came in the final week when the 49ers were resting their starters for the playoffs. This year's wins had a much bigger impact in the playoff hopes for both teams and will leave a much bitter taste in the mouths of the 49ers heading into next season.