Getty Dre Greenlaw lays a hit on Justin Herbert on November 13, 2022 in Santa Clara.
Dre Greenlaw was unable to finish the Sunday, November 13 home victory for the San Francisco 49ers against the Los Angeles Chargers.
No, it wasn’t because of an injury. It was due to this helmet-to-helmet collision he delivered on Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert in the 22-16 win at Levi’s Stadium.
Greenlaw was then captured on film cheering on the 49ers defense while being escorted back to the 49ers’ locker room. Azeez Al-Shaair eventually took over his spot.
Turns out it didn’t take long for the speedy outside linebacker to post his reaction on the official ruling. And it was a two-worded reaction:
National & Bay Area Media Reacts to Greenlaw Hit
As expected, Greenlaw’s hit on the 2021 Pro Bowler became a debated topic on social media.
But it came with backers for the 49ers’ veteran defender.
One supporter was David Lombardi of The Athletic, who took to Twitter for his reaction and the 49ers insider believed that Greenlaw was not trying to purposely hurt the Charger QB.
“A personal foul, I understand. But how can the officials prove there was malicious intent from Dre Greenlaw — enough for an ejection — on a bang-bang play where Justin Herbert was falling down and therefore a moving target?” Lombardi asked.
Nick Newman from All 49ers on Fan Nation was another vocal one toward the Greenlaw decision — even using a Disney character reference in wondering what exactly Greenlaw was supposed to do in that scenario.
“I just fail to understand what Dre Greenlaw is supposed to do there. Is he supposed to freeze time like he’s Frozone in the Incredibles and just pause time as he casually avoids Justin Herbert as he’s running 20 MPH in the open field?” Newman asked.
Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports Bay Area shared how even media members who cover the Chargers inside the Levi’s Stadium press box questioned the referee decision.
“The resounding opinion — even from Chargers media — seems to be that Dre Greenlaw should not have been ejected,” Chan posted.
Turns out one of them as Chan alluded to was Daniel Popper, who covers the Chargers for The Athletic.
“Dre Greenlaw has been ejected for helmet to helmet hit on Justin Herbert. Wow,” Popper tweeted.
Popper wasn’t alone on the Charger media side. Lindsey Thiry of ESPN called out the decision.
“That does not seem fair to Dre Greenlaw. It was a football play. Man,” Thiry shared.
Greenlaw’s hit then sparked a reaction on the national side. Pat McAfee questioned the motive behind the decision to toss Greenlaw out. And the verbose radio host on Sirius XM referred to the decision as a collage football tactic.
“Very college football of these refs to boot Dre Greenlaw,” McAfee tweeted out. “Is this now the precedent going forward @NFLOfficiating and @nflcommish? I might’ve missed something but I don’t remember this being the NFL’s standard? I honestly can’t recall.”
49ers Head Coach Reacts to Greenlaw Hit
Kyle Shanahan got asked if Greenlaw deserved to be ejected from the game during his post presser with the media.
“No I didn’t think so at all. It actually blew my mind,” Shanahan said. “I mean, I understand the penalty. But I’ve got to learn what that is (the helmet-to-helmet rule that leads to an ejection). That really shocked me.”
Shanahan adds how he hopes the NFL officiating office can teach him and his 49ers what the rule is so they can understand why Greenlaw was lost for the rest of the game.
Greenlaw still tied for the team lead in tackles alongside Fred Warner. He also led the 49ers with six solo stops.