Kyle Shanahan explains why 49ers keep welcoming back former players

Kyle Shanahan has never been shy about a reunion. With Deebo Samuel and Dre Greenlaw back in San Francisco and Dante Pettis now on the practice squad, the San Francisco 49ers head coach explained in an interview with NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco that the door stays open because of the type of players they are.

"It was their home," Shanahan said of players returning to San Francisco. "It's where they started out. They went other places. Whatever happened there doesn't really matter, but I think that they were excited to come back and I know how excited we were to get them back."

Samuel and Greenlaw were selected in the 2019 draft and spent their first six seasons in San Francisco. Both then left: Greenlaw signed with the Denver Broncos during the 2025 offseason, and Samuel was traded to the Washington Commanders after requesting a deal. After one year away, each returned on a one-year contract in 2026.

Samuel caught 77 passes for 727 yards and five touchdowns for the Commanders in 2025, but his play declined over the season and Washington decided not to bring him back. Shanahan, meanwhile, wasn't confident the 49ers could bring him back because of interest from elsewhere. But after a litany of receiver injuries decimated the offense, a reunion made sense for both sides.

"I thought he was going to end up somewhere else, but we did watch him on tape, and when you put the tape together, you see Deebo," Shanahan said. "You could see in Washington that he still had the same skill set ... we thought on tape last year, we didn't see a guy who had changed. It looked like the Deebo we had always known."

Greenlaw, meanwhile, left after the Broncos offered him a deal he knew the 49ers couldn't match. But his 2025 season didn't go as planned after a significant quad injury sidelined him until Week 7, and a hamstring issue later ended his regular season. He was also suspended for one game and was eventually released after 43 combined tackles, one sack and one interception in eight games.

Pettis is an even more recent example, after only coming back this week after being away from the team since 2020. The 49ers took him in the second round of the 2018 draft, but he was eventually waived and bounced around the league, spending time with four different teams. San Francisco signed him to the practice squad on Tuesday.

The reunions have worked out well for Samuel and Greenlaw, while Pettis hasn't seen the field yet for San Francisco. Samuel has nine receptions for 159 yards and two scores, while Greenlaw has 22 tackles combined.