49ers

49ers LB Dee Winters said that the Jets were one of the teams during the pre-draft process that wanted him to increase his weight.

“They said, ‘We want to see what you look like at 230.’ And I was like 218 at the time,” Winters recalled via NY Times. “I had, like, two or three weeks to put on 12 pounds. So I was eating everything under the sun.”

49ers LB Fred Warner said that Winters has the ability to be the enforcer of the team’s defense.

“There are times when I see him making plays, and he’s just stinging guys,” Warner said. “And I’m like, ‘Whoa!’ He’s got something in his body that few guys have. I don’t even have it in my body, the type of hits that he makes.”

Warner added that Winters reminds him of former 49ers LB Dre Greenlaw.

“It does remind you of a Dre,” Warner said. ”I always remember that Reuben Foster had that trait about him where he just popped out of his cleats. Some guys have got that trait. And (Winters) has got it with that speed and explosive ability in his body.”

Winters admitted that he was unsure of the playbook during his first season in the NFL.

“I would say I was uncertain of what to do on some plays,” he said. “There would be some formations, and I would be like, ‘All right, I don’t know what to do. Let’s not just run anywhere. Let me kind of find a place to sit, find the ball, then run to it.’”

49ers HC Kyle Shanahan said that the team wanted to integrate Winters into the defense early on this season.

“Dee Winters is a guy we wanted to get in there early,” Shanahan said. “He ended up getting a high-ankle sprain last year and kept zinging it. But once he kind of got in there and started going consistently and staying healthy, you could see (his ability) toward the end of the year.”

• 49ers OT Colton McKivitz‘s three-year, $45.0 million extension includes a $10,357,778 signing bonus and $27,655,000 option bonus. He’s owed a guaranteed salary of $10,230,000 in 2026, and nonguaranteed salaries of $1,500,000 in 2027, and $7,360,000 in 2028. He can also earn up to $2,550,000 in per-game roster bonuses, $600,000 in workout bonuses, and another $650,000 bonus. (OverTheCap)
• 49ers LB Fred Warner was fined $23,186 for using the helmet.
• Shanahan on when WR Brandon Aiyuk could return: “I think it’s more like when we get kind of an exact target date. That’s when you look at it that way. I think we’re getting close to that. But just not to have a target date is that’s when I start thinking about it and we don’t have that yet. So, we’re waiting until they give us one.” (Nick Wagoner)

Cardinals

Cardinals HC Jonathan Gannon is not happy with how his offense has performed so far this year, especially the running game’s efficiency....