Here’s why 49ers linebacker Fred Warner always has a football in his hands

Fred Warner was among several players who spoke during this week's State of the Franchise event. Greg Papa, who serves as the radio voice for the team, was curious about something. Papa noticed that the linebacker is always walking around the facility, whether he's heading to a meeting or elsewhere, with a football in his grasp. Why is that?

Of course, that's when Warner and the rest of the players are there at the facility. They haven't been able to enter the building this offseason due to precautions surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.

Papa joked that the State of the Franchise discussion may have been the first time he's seen Warner without that football.

"I give all the credit to Kwon (Alexander)," Warner explained. "He's the one who started that. Kwon, he brought this mindset to the entire defense, the entire team from the moment he got on the squad.

"Carrying around the football is just reminding you that the ball is everything. When you're out there on the field, I'm constantly trying to attack the ball, and I think that's the mindset of everybody on our defense. And I think you saw that game in and game out when we were creating takeaways (last season) for the team."

Warner, a third-round draft pick by the 49ers in 2018, is entering his third NFL season. He registered 118 tackles, three sacks, nine passes defensed, an interception, a touchdown, and three forced fumbles through 16 games last season, per Pro Football Reference.