Dee Winters: Everything you need to know

The 49ers traded Winters to the Cowboys on Friday in exchange for the 152nd pick of the 2026 NFL Draft, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports. A sixth-round draft pick in 2023, Winters took Dre Greenlaw's starting spot at weakside linebacker last year, when the former posted a career-high 101 total tackles and five pass defenses (including a pick-six) across 17 regular-season games. Winters' spot on the Cowboys' first-team defense is far from guaranteed as he'll face competition from DeMarvion Overshown (concussion) and Shemar James for a starting spot at inside linebacker.

Winters recorded 101 tackles (67 solo) and an interception in 17 regular-season games with the 49ers in 2025. Winters took over the starting role vacated by Dre Greenlaw's departure to Denver this past offseason. The third-year linebacker played the most snaps of his career (1,010) while cracking the century mark in combined tackles for IDP managers. Fred Warner (ankle) should be ready to reclaim his spot in the middle of San Francisco's defense in 2026, and Winters' strong play has put him in prime position to start alongside Warner for the final year of his rookie contract.

Winters (ankle) is active for Saturday's divisional-round matchup versus the Seahawks, Briana Jeannel of the 49ers' official site reports. Winters is healthy again after missing last week's wild-card win over the Eagles due to an ankle injury. He should resume his role as one of San Francisco's starting linebackers alongside Eric Kendricks and Luke Gifford during Saturday's game.