Dre Greenlaw: Everything you need to know

The 49ers signed Greenlaw to a one-year, $7.5 million contract Thursday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. Greenlaw spent the first six years of his career with San Francisco before signing with the Broncos last offseason. Greenlaw went on to miss more than half of the season due to quadriceps and hamstring injuries, appearing in just eight regular-season contests. He's made just 10 regular-season appearances across the last two seasons due to lower-body injuries. Greenlaw knows the system and is a veteran option for a linebacker group that dealt with a rash of injuries during the 2025 campaign.

The Broncos released Greenlaw on Monday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. Per Chris Tomasson of The Denver Gazette, cutting Greenlaw provided the Broncos with $6.023 million in salary cap relief and means that Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad will both serve as Denver's starting inside linebackers for the 2026 campaign. Greenlaw inked a three-year deal with the Broncos in March of 2025 after spending the first six years of his NFL career with the 49ers. He was limited to just eight regular-season games in 2025 due to quadriceps and hamstring injuries, though he managed to play in both of Denver's playoff games and logged 10 tackles across those two contests. Greenlaw has appeared in just 10 regular-season games over the last two years due to multiple lower-body injuries, but the Arkansas product should garner interest from teams who are looking to add veteran depth to their linebacker corps.

Greenlaw recorded 43 tackles (15 solo), including 1.0 sacks, and two passes defensed, including one interception and one forced fumble across eight games with Denver in 2025. Greenlaw's first season with the Broncos was an overall disappointment due to quadriceps and hamstring injuries that sidelined him for much of the season. With that said, the 28-year-old linebacker did make an impact when he was on the field, proving to be an excellent addition to the Broncos defense when healthy. The former 49er will look to stay healthy in 2026 and should play a key role in the Broncos' top-tier defense next season.