Kyle Shanahan Insinuates 49ers Had No Choice in Trading Dee Winters

It was a wise and necessary trade for the 49ers to make.

September 28, 2025; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers linebacker Dee Winters (53) during the third quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

It was a bit of a surprise when the San Francisco 49ers traded linebacker Dee Winters to the Dallas Cowboys for a fifth-round pick.

Winters was a starter for the 49ers last season. And while he wasn’t some standout talent, he played fairly well given the circumstances. But the reality is his fate was sealed once Dre Greenlaw was signed.

And it’s not like the 49ers are going to make Winters take a backseat after he started all season. That probably wouldn’t have gone over well with him. In any case, Winters was loved in the locker room.

Kyle Shanahan even acknowledged the 49ers considered retaining him. However, they didn’t really have a choice. Shanahan insinuated that when he was asked about the 49ers trading Winters.

Kyle Shanahan details decision to trade Dee Winters

“We would've loved to keep Dee. We also just looked at our overall roster when you look one to two years out,” Shanahan said at OTAs. “Also knowing the number of unrestricted free agents we have, the number of guys that we do feel can make this team at linebacker, the thought that we were going to add linebackers in the draft and it’s hard to stockpile players.

“When you can add a Draft pick and add a younger guy when you might be losing someone the next year and stuff, last thing I wanted to do is trade Dee. We know how much he'd help us as one of our top three backers, we know how much he'd help us if Dre or Fred got hurt. But then you also look into contracts, how a year out and stuff that is, what you're doing in the Draft and sometimes you’ve got to make tough decisions like that that can possibly help you in the future.”

It was extremely wise of the 49ers to trade Winters. By no means was it an easy decision given the love they have for him and what he did last season. But “no choice” decisions are always tough.

There was no way the 49ers were going to extend Winters this offseason. Even if he did play well in 2026, the 49ers wouldn’t be able to afford him with the massive wave of cap hits incoming.

This was the right and only move for them to make by trading a player in the final year of his contract so that they get something rather than nothing.

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