James Jones: One Player’s Injury Has Led To The 49ers’ Downfall This Season

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Injuries have decimated the San Francisco 49ers for months and have largely resulted in their 6-9 record and the funk that Niners Faithful finds itself in. The team has lost many, many players to various ailments, from big-time Pro Bowlers to depth players who don’t play that many snaps.

In some ways, it seems the injury bug started to sink its teeth into the Niners during last season’s Super Bowl. That’s when star Will linebacker Dre Greenlaw tore his Achilles while coming out onto the field from the sideline to celebrate a play. It was a sign that they would not only lose the world championship but not even come close to competing for one this season.

On Fox Sports 1’s “The Facility,” James Jones said that Greenlaw’s injury, much more than anything else, is to blame for San Francisco’s downfall and explained why.

James Jones on the main reason for the 49ers downfall in 2024:
“For me it’s Dre Greenlaw. I blame him and it started in the Super Bowl. In the Super Bowl game when Dre Greenlaw was in that game the Chiefs had 80 yards and zero points. When he went out of that football game, they… pic.twitter.com/5Yz2dwXFYE
— Coach Yac 🗣 (@Coach_Yac) December 25, 2024

Greenlaw finally made his return two weeks ago versus the Los Angeles Rams. In the first half, he was seemingly everywhere and had eight total tackles (three solo) as the Niners played to a 3-3 tie at halftime. But he was unable to return in the third quarter, and his absence swung things just enough in L.A.’s factor to result in a 12-6 Niners loss.

His ability to fly around and make plays off the ball previously made the Niners one of the best, if not the best, defensive teams in the NFL.