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White

White gives the 49ers some emergency depth for the playoffs with Tatum Bethune hurt. The 49ers finished Week 18 with Eric Kendricks and Garret Wallow at linebacker and won’t get Fred Warner back until the NFC Championship, at earliest.

White last season in Arizona had 137 tackles, 2.5 sacks and 9 tackles for a loss as a starting linebacker. He should instantly become a starter in a Tennessee defense that struggled to stop the run and the pass in 2024, and should struggle once again in 2025. White, 29, has 7.5 sacks over 92 regular season games since entering the NFL in 2018.

White, who started all 17 games for the Cardinals last year and finished with 137 combined tackles, is one of the more surprising names still on the free-agent market. With the Colts clearly looking for outside help at linebacker, it makes a lot of sense for them to sniff around the veteran.

The Lions are already dealing with multiple injuries on defense and it’s only the first week of training camp. At linebacker, Alex Anzalone is working his way through a hamstring issue and doesn’t have a return timeline. Even if he’s back in short order, the Lions know the value of depth on defense after sending swathes of defenders to injured reserve last year. White finished 2024 with 137 combined tackles, second-most on the Cardinals, and 2.5 sacks. As NFL inside Jordan Schultz notes, he is one of the biggest names left on the free agency market.

White re-joins ex-DC Jonathan Gannon in the desert. He’s been a steady linebacker for the majority of his NFL career, only playing notably poorly in 2020 when he had a down year as a run defender. White is a needed boost to this unit as five of Arizona’s seven inside linebackers were free agents this offseason, and White likely projects as a starter.

White had a breakout 2021, registering 144 tackles, seven TFLs, and two interceptions while playing 84% of defensive snaps as an every-down starter. The Chargers played primarily out of their nickel package where White, a converted safety, excelled as an off-ball linebacker. White projects to start on the weak-side in Philly and should upgrade an Eagles defense that had just 16 takeaways last season.

Players being added this late in the week is always a concern, but there are no reports of the Chargers having a breakout. They remain on track to play against the Jets on Sunday.

White made three starts and was playing 73 percent of snaps before going down last year. He made his biggest impact in coverage, but the addition of Thomas Davis may cut into his third-down usage. With White healthy and a full season of Joey Bosa, the Chargers should remain one of the league’s top defenses.

White had been sidelined since his Week 3 knee scope. Getting placed on IR this late means he’s done for the year, but White should be fully healthy for the offseason. A fourth round pick, White was playing 73 percent of snaps before going down. He’ll return in a 2019 starting role.

This is no insignificant loss; White was playing 73% of the Chargers’ defensive snaps and shining in coverage. A highly athletic fourth-round pick out of West Virginia, White’s loss will be felt this week against white-hot Jared Cook.