The San Francisco 49ers have tough shoes to fill in the wake of star linebacker Dre Greenlaw departing via free agency to the Denver Broncos last March.
When Greenlaw and the Broncos head to the Bay Area for both joint practices and a preseason opener this week, they'll get a firsthand look at how the Niners went about replacing him on the depth chart behind All-Pro Fred Warner.
Initially, it appeared as if San Francisco wanted an open competition between third-year pro Dee Winters and its Round 3 pick from last April's NFL Draft, Nick Martin.