Niner Losses

The San Francisco 49ers suffered a massive loss early on in the Super Bowl with a freak injury to Dre Greenlaw.

Head Coach Kyle Shanahan confirmed it is a torn achilles for the team’s starting linebacker who was injured when running onto the field for a defensive series. 

Kyle Shanahan confirmed that Dre Greenlaw tore his Achilles

— Lindsay Jones (@bylindsayhjones) February 12, 2024

GETTY IMAGES: 49ers LB Dre Greelaw tore his achilles in the Super Bowl.

The 26-year-old has been a staple of the Niners defense, recording 120 tackles in the 2023 regular season, his second straight season with 100+.

In the NFC’s Divisional Round, Greenlaw made two interceptions in the second half to seal the team’s 24-21 win. He was similarly flying all over the field against Kansas City before his untimely exit. 

Losing Greenlaw made it easier for Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs to attack the middle of the field in their 25-22 comeback victory in overtime.

With Greenlaw’s status now in doubt for at least the start of the 2024 season, the heartbroken Niners will enter the offseason with the major task of finding a reliable player to fill in next to All Pro middle linebacker Fred Warner. 

The only other healthy LBs currently on the team’s roster is 2023 sixth round pick Dee Winters and 2023 seventh round pick Jalen Graham.

Commanders Hire Johnson

The incestuous nature of the NFC East coaching carousel continued, as the Washington Commanders hired former Giants offensive line coach Bobby Johnson for the same position in the nation’s capital, per NFL Network.

Johnson will work under new Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury and join the staff of new head coach Dan Quinn, who just left his post as Cowboys defensive coordinator.

Johnson spent 2022-2023 as Giants offensive line coach after holding the same position for the Buffalo Bills from 2019-2021.

Saints Land Kubiak

The Saints are hoping a “Shanahan-style offense” can rescue their passing offense and quarterback Derek Carr.

The team is reportedly landing 49ers pass game coordinator Klint Kubiak as its new offensive coordinator, per NFL Network.

The #Saints and #49ers passing game coordinator Klint Kubiak have reached a deal for Kubiak to be their new offensive coordinator, source says. The top target all along, Kubiak’s hire gives coach Dennis Allen a rising play-caller who was coveted by several other teams.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 12, 2024

The well-traveled Kubiak, son of former Super Bowl champion head coach Gary Kubiak, went from Vikings OC in 2021 to Broncos pass game coordinator in 2022 to Niners pass game coordinator in 2023 and now moves onto New Orleans.

The Saints hope Kubiak can revive an offense that hasn’t cracked top-10 since 2019 and hasn’t finished higher than 14th in total offense over the past four seasons despite the team’s defense being ranked top-10 in each of the last four years under Dennis Allen.

The Saints, who went 9-8 last year, were eliminated from postseason contention on the final weekend of the regular season.

– Geoff Mosher and Benjamin Paul contributed to this report for InsideTheBirds.com.