One of the Broncos’ key free agent signees won’t see the field for a while.
Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports Bay Area reports that linebacker Dre Greenlaw tore a quadriceps while working out. The injury could force him to miss a substantial portion of the 2025 season, per Chan.
It is unknown whether Greenlaw will require surgery to repair it.
The Broncos declined comment to Chan.
Greenlaw tore his Achilles in Super Bowl LVIII to end the 2023 season and missed most of last season before a brief return. He played only Weeks 14-15 before knee and calf soreness related to his Achilles ended his season.
Greenlaw, who turns 28 next month, made nine tackles last season.
He spent six seasons with the 49ers before becoming a free agent. General Manager John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan flew to Texas to meet with Greenlaw after he had committed to the Broncos, but Greenlaw still signed a three-year deal worth up to $31.5 million.
UPDATE 8:08 P.M. ET: A source tells PFT that Greenlaw strained his quadriceps and will miss eight weeks. He is expected to return in time for training camp.
The 49ers have an injury issue that previously wasn’t known.
Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports safety Malik Mustapha underwent an ACL repair following the 2024 season. He suffered the injury in Week 18, against the Cardinals.
He took a cleat to the knee during the game. Initially, it was believed that he was fine. An MRI conducted later in the week revealed that the graft from a 2022 ACL repair had torn.
Via Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group, the 49ers confirmed the Mustapha injury and surgery on Saturday night.
The injury means that rookie fifth-rounder Marques Sigle could be playing right away. Mustapha isn’t expected to be ready to go until the middle of the season.
Mustapha was a fourth-round pick of the 49ers in 2024. He appeared in 16 games with 12 starts as a rookie.
The 49ers added safeties Richie Grant and Jason Pinnock in free agency. They lost Talanoa Hufanga to the Broncos after his rookie contract expired.
Ji’Ayir Brown and George Odum also are on the roster.
The 2024 season was a disappointing one in San Francisco, with the 49ers entering the year as the favorites in every game on their schedule, and ultimately going just 6-11.
Now the 49ers head into the 2025 NFL Draft with some major needs, with an offensive lineman, defensive lineman or cornerback likely to be the positions they target in the first round.
San Francisco 49ers 2025 NFL Draft Picks
Round 1: No. 11 - Mykel Williams, EDGE, Georgia
Round 2: No. 43 - Alfred Collins, DT, Texas
Round 3: No. 75 - Nick Martin, LB, Oklahoma State
Round 3: No. 100 (Compensatory) - Upton Stout, CB, Western Kentucky
Round 4: No. 113 - CJ West, DT, Indiana
Round 4: No. 138 (Compensatory) - Jordan Watkins, WR, Ole Miss
Round 5: No. 147 (from NO via WAS) - Jordan James, RB, Oregon
Round 5: No. 160 (from MIN) - Marques Sigle, S, Kansas State
Round 7: No. 227 - Kurtis Rourke, QB, Indiana
Round 7: No. 249 (Compensatory) - Connor Colby, G, Iowa
Round 7: No. 252 (Compensatory) - Junior Bergen, WR, Montana
Check out 2025 NFL Draft picks for other teams in the NFC West:
Seattle Seahawks 2025 NFL Draft picks
Los Angeles Rams 2025 NFL Draft picks
Arizona Cardinals 2025 NFL Draft picks
Click here to see the entire 2025 NFL Draft order. Coverage of the latest news from around the NFL is available all year round from Pro Football Talk on Peacock and the NFL on NBC YouTube Channel.
For the full slate of NFL Draft content from across NBC Sports, click here.
Drafting a quarterback in the seventh round worked out well for the 49ers with Brock Purdy, and today they’ve done it again.
The 49ers drafted Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke with the 227th overall pick.
Rourke probably would have been a higher pick if not for the fact that he has twice torn his right ACL. Last year he played the entire season despite suffering his second ACL tear at the start of the season. He got it surgically repaired only when it was detected during pre-draft medical checks.
It’s unclear whether Rourke will be cleared to play this season, and if he does he’d at best be the third quarterback behind Purdy and Mac Jones.
Rourke was a second-team All-Big Ten quarterback and led Indiana to a spot in the College Football Playoff. He could develop into a solid NFL quarterback, and he’ll try to do so this year in Kyle Shanahan’s offense.
Just before the 49ers selection to end the fourth round was announced, team owner Jed York posted, “Let’s change it up” on social media.
That was as good an indication as any that San Francisco was finally going to bring in an offensive player, which is exactly what they did.
The 49ers took receiver Jordan Watkins out of Ole Miss at No. 138 overall.
Watkins, 23, spent his first two collegiate seasons at Louisville before transferring to Ole Miss in 2022. He led the SEC with nine receiving touchdowns in 2024, catching 49 passes for 906 yards.
In his 60 total collegiate games with 42 starts, Watkins caught 185 passes for 2,682 yards with 18 TDs.
The 49ers had previously selected defensive players with their first five picks in this year’s draft, starting with defensive end Mykel Williams at No. 11 in the first round.
For the second time in the 2025 NFL draft, the 49ers have added a big presence in their interior defensive line.
This time it was Indiana defensive tackle CJ West, who went to the 49ers in the fourth round with the 113th overall pick.
West has many of the same traits the 49ers liked about their second-round pick, Texas defensive tackle Alfred Collins, who went to San Francisco with the 43rd overall pick. Both are big and hard to block, and both were more productive as run defenders than as pass rushers in college.
All five of the 49ers’ picks have been on defense, and they’re making no secret that they think they need an influx of young talent on that side of the ball. The 49ers hope to have West and Collins starting next to each other on the defensive line in the years to come.
After quarterback Shedeur Sanders wasn’t drafted in round one, most thought he would be drafted in round two. After he wasn’t drafted in round three, most think he’ll go in round four.
If that happens, where are the hot spots?
The first one that stands out is the Raiders, at the sixth pick (No. 108). They did their homework on Shedeur, and they need a long-term answer at the position.
Then there’s minority owner/majority influence Tom Brady’s relationship with Shedeur. They now have something else in common — and Brady can use that shared experience of being made to wait way too long to light a raging fire that will never be extinguished.
Two picks later, the Jets will be on the clock. The Jets have 2024 draft pick Jordan Travis, who was a Heisman finalist before suffering a serious leg injury during the 2023 college season. For now, their contenders to start are Justin Fields and Tyrod Taylor.
The Eagles are a sneaky wild card at No. 111, one pick after the Jets. If they’re committed to taking the best available player, why not Shedeur? While his style is different from starter Jalen Hurts, there’s real value in snagging Shedeur this late in the process.
The same thinking applies to the 49ers at No. 113. With Brock Purdy’s long-term deal not done, what if coach Kyle Shanahan becomes intrigued by the possibility of making Shedeur into the next Purdy?
The Colts at No. 117 could make sense, since they basically have co-starters who may not coagulate as the answer.
The Steelers will be back on the clock at No. 123. While it’s clear that they expect Aaron Rodgers to show up, they need a developmental quarterback. Shedeur could be the answer.
The Rams at No. 127 also make sense. They took a fourth-round flier on Stetson Bennett two years ago. Sanders is objectively better than Bennett — and the Rams clearly need a post-Stafford answer.
We’ll see how it goes. Round four starts soon. If Sanders is still on the board when round five starts, one of the nuttiest stories in draft history will be even nuttier.
49ers tight end George Kittle did not show up for the start of the offseason program, but on social media, he denied a report his absence was contract related.
Kittle was back in the team facility Friday for conditioning, NFL Media reports.
Kittle, 31, is entering the last year of a five-year, $75 million contract. He is scheduled to have a cap number of $22.026 million for 2025.
Kittle and the 49ers are reportedly “far apart” on their contract talks, but Kittle denied a report he wants to become the NFL’s highest-paid tight end.
He has six Pro Bowls and twice has earned All-Pro honors in eight seasons, totaling 538 catches for 7,380 yards and 45 touchdowns.
The 49ers have added to their run defense in the second round of the 2025 NFL draft.
San Francisco selected Texas defensive tackle Alfred Collins with the 43rd overall pick.
The 6-foot-6, 332-pound Collins provides a big presence in the middle of the defensive line and should make an immediate contribution in San Francisco on running downs. But he’s not much of a pass rusher.
The 49ers are coming off a disappointing season and find themselves with a lot of holes to fill this offseason, and Collins fills a big hole on the run defense.
In the aftermath of selecting defensive lineman Mykel Williams, 49ers General Manager John Lynch told reporters that the club had to sweat out some moments before getting to No. 11.
Lynch even noted that San Francisco tried to trade up, but that effort was unsuccessful.
Still, the 49ers were able to get the player they wanted.
“The film is very impressive,” Lynch said, via transcript from the team. “Mykel is a big, good-looking kid in every way. He’s big, he’s tall, he’s long, he’s a great athlete, he’s tough, he’s smart, he’s versatile. He can play outside, he can play inside. He does all those things. I think the toughness — he played through an ankle injury last year and missed two games, but high-ankle sprains can be a tough deal, and to only miss two games and play as well as he did. Came through here on a 30 visit and really got a feel for the kid.
“And I just think all of that led us to this guy as a Niner. He fits who we are, our culture, and we pounced when he was there.”
Lynch added that he feels Williams has a lot of upside.
“His skillset is a guy that can rush with power, he is a good enough athlete where he’s got some wiggle,” Lynch said. “He’s extremely proficient, I think, when they run games. For that big of an athlete, I think he’s a really good stop-start. Sometimes those guys can get going, but it’s hard when a quarterback steps up, they can’t change direction. I think he can do that really well. He’s got a lot of attributes. He’s obviously got to come put them all together. But we’re excited to work with him.”
Williams was a two-time, second-team All-SEC selection at Georgia, recording 21.0 sacks with 21.5 tackles for loss in 40 games with the program.
