49ers Weekly Recap: Julio Jones traded, 2nd week of OTAs, a few signings, and more

Here's your recap of the top San Francisco 49ers-related stories from the past week.

Julio Jones Trade

This week wrapped up with a bang, as on early Sunday morning, Ian Rapoport reported that Julio Jones was traded to the Tennessee Titans along with a 2023 sixth-round pick in exchange for a 2022 second-round pick and 2023 fourth-round pick.
Read More

Second Week of OTAs

In other news, week two of organized team activities (OTAs) concluded and with that came more press conferences. New defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans was in the spotlight as he shared his plan of attack for the upcoming season. "Our defense will be a fast, attacking, aggressive defense."

In addition, Ryans stressed that the powerful defensive line would serve as his unit's core, with the other position groups playing off of the line. "Our D-Line is going to attack. Our linebackers and secondary, they're going to play with base fundamentals. We're going to play off our D-Line. We're going to allow our D-Line to get off the ball and attack, we're going to clean up things behind them, but we will be a more aggressive, attacking defense."
Read More

Ryans also spent time setting expectations and praising his players. The former linebacker-turned-coach singled out third-year linebacker Dre Greenlaw as a player ready to make that next leap, which is encouraging given his solid play over the past two seasons, along with defensive tackles Javon Kinlaw and Kevin Givens.
Read More

Ryans gave extensive praise to Kinlaw, saying he is confident the second-year player would take "a huge jump this year."
Read More

Veteran defensive backs Jason Verrett and Jimmie Ward also praised the 49ers rookies in the secondary, with Verrett giving extended praise to fifth-round pick Deommodore Lenoir. "D-Mo, that's a guy that I think has come along real well just from the first time of seeing the film of him at rookie minicamp," Verrett said. "A guy that's really good at press. I definitely watched him all throughout this time he's been here. The second that he gets more comfortable out there, he could definitely be a good player for us. Along with Ambry, he's a guy who's real versatile, fast, and so far a lot of the rookies have been playing well."

Ward also mentioned that he could be a leader with a younger defensive back group this year, even if it means playing the role of the bad guy, citing Richard Sherman as his previous mentor.
Read More

Recent Acquisitions

Last Wednesday, Weston Richburg officially announced his retirement from the NFL, headlining a flurry of moves that the 49ers made over the past week. In a corresponding move, the 49ers signed linebacker James Burgess Jr. to compete for a roster spot alongside their multitude of worthy linebackers.
Read More

The 49ers also brought in tight end MyCole Pruitt on a one-year deal last Wednesday. Pruitt last played for the Titans, and after working him out last week, the 49ers decided to sign him to a contract.
Read More

Lastly, the 49ers brought in wide receiver Andy Jones, parting ways with quarterback Josh Johnson and tight end Daniel Helm in the process. The release of Josh Johnson opened up space in the crowded 49ers quarterback room.
Read More

Tune in next week for the 49ers weekly recap.

Written By: