SANTA CLARA – Two jarring moves Thursday impacted the 49ers’ defense: linebacker Dre Greenlaw’s sentimental return and defensive end [Bryce Huff’s stunning retirement](https://www.instagram.com/p/DVy_dWJknrg/).
Greenlaw, an aggressive menace and Fred Warner’s ideal sidekick from 2019-24, is coming back on a one-year, $7.5 million deal, a league source confirmed.
Huff, acquired last June from the Philadelphia Eagles, announced in a 3 ½-minute Instagram video that he was ending his six-year NFL career to launch a company, Naberstone, that suppresses lithium battery fires.
While first-year defensive coordinator Raheem Morris inherits a unit that’s undergone radical changes over the past year, the lack of pass rushers becomes a bigger need than expected with Huff not returning. The 49ers did, however, trade Wednesday for [defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa](https://www.mercurynews.com/2026/03/11/49ers-osa-odighizuwa-trade-cowboys/) from the Dallas Cowboys for a third-round draft pick.
Huff, who cost the 49ers a fifth-round pick last June, tallied four sacks last season, the most on a defense that overall produced a NFL-low 20 sacks. He had none in the final 10 games after missing two games to a hamstring injury.
The 49ers’ other starting defensive ends – Nick Bosa, Mykel Williams and Keion White – are all recovering from injuries but expected to be ready for the season opener in six months. Also, the 49ers tendered Sam Okuayinonu as a restricted free agent on Wednesday.
Huff, who turns 28 on April 17, reflected on his entire football career as a Mobile, Alabama native who went on to play at Memphis then the New York Jets. He noted how he earned the largest contract in NFL history for an undrafted non-quarterback two years ago with the Eagles (three years, $51 million).
Huff proudly spoke how last season’s 49ers “battled through injuries, fought our way into the playoffs and gave everything we had. Through all of it, I realized something: Football has been my entire life. I’ve played ever since I was 4 years old. But at 27 years old, I know I’m capable of giving the world more than just football.”
Greenlaw, who turns 29 on May 25, spurned the 49ers’ last-ditch overture in free agency last spring to sign with the Denver Broncos. That three-year, $30 million contract proved to last only one season for $10 million as the Broncos designated him Wednesday as a post-June 1 release.
Greenlaw paired with Warner as a dynamic linebacker tandem, up until an Achilles tear in the 2023 team’s Super Bowl loss. A quadriceps injury last offseason hindered Greenlaw as he missed nine games and did not start either of the Broncos’ playoff games.
Dee Winters and 2025 draft pick Nick Martin figure to compete with Greenlaw to line up next to Warner, who missed the final three months last season after fracturing his right ankle.
The 49ers did not officially announce Greenlaw’s return or Huff’s retirement, but they did confirm previously reported deals for tight end Jake Tonges (two years, $8 million) and offensive linemen Vederian Lowe (two years, $9.3 million) and Brett Toth (one year).