The San Francisco 49ers made a late preseason move to add linebacker help through a trade with the New Orleans Saints, but the stop in Santa Clara was brief. Deion Jones was cut on Sunday, just about a week after the deal, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
“49ers released veteran linebacker Deion Jones, whom they acquired last week from the Saints,” Schefter reported.
Jones won’t be on San Francisco’s 53-man roster for the 2026-27 campaign. The 31-year-old entered the league as a second-round pick of the Atlanta Falcons in the 2016 NFL Draft, and he spent his first six seasons in Atlanta as a regular starter. Over the next four years, he filled backup roles with the Cleveland Browns, Carolina Panthers, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Last season with Tampa Bay, Jones played in 17 games and finished with 29 combined tackles, including 16 solo stops. Now, after being traded by the Saints and then moved on by the 49ers almost immediately, his NFL future is in doubt.
San Francisco’s linebacker group is expected to run through Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw in the club’s 4-3 defense. Tatum Bethune and Luke Gifford are also viewed as the leading backup options. What the final linebacker count will look like under Mike Shanahan and the coaching staff is still unclear.
The 49ers are coming out of a hectic offseason and will open the new campaign in Week 1 on “Thursday Night Football” against the Los Angeles Rams. Kickoff is set for 8:35 p.m. on September 10.
In Other News...
49ers Defensive Front Just Lost A Rookie They Were Counting On
Mykel Williams rookie year is starting with an unexpected pause after the 49ers placed the defensive lineman on the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform List, pushing back his debut by at least the first four games. The first-round pick from the 2025 NFL Draft had been part of the plan for a front that expected to lean on its young pass rush talent, but an ACL injury has changed the opening stretch and ensured he will not be on the field for the season opener.
San Francisco has already set its 53-man roster, and the edge-rusher group will have to carry the load without him for now, with Sam Okuayinou, Keion White and Romello Height among the names on the list. The early absence matters because Williams was supposed to help line up next to Nick Bosa, and now the 49ers will have to find out how much pressure they can generate before their rookie defender is eligible to return. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Just Lost A Defender They Wanted To Keep
The 49ers roster churn is still rolling as teams around the league sort through waiver claims and the next round of practice-squad and injured reserve moves. San Francisco had been trying to keep its depth intact, but the early action already trimmed away some familiar names, with the Raiders grabbing Darrell Luter, the Chiefs taking Bryson Eason, and the Colts landing Kapena Gushiken.
There is still more movement to come before the day is done, and that is where the 49ers will get their next look at how the back end of the roster settles. Christian Jones and Isaiah Foskey were also part of the broader conversation around roster decisions and development, which is exactly why these post-cutdown hours can matter so much for a team trying to preserve young talent wherever it can. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Just Got A Harsh Early Reality Check In The NFC West
The NFC West already looked unforgiving for San Francisco, and now the early path has gotten even steeper. Reports that Aaron Donald is coming out of retirement to return to the Los Angeles Rams only add to a roster that already carried plenty of defensive bite, and the comparison between the two teams has tilted further toward Los Angeles on both sides of the ball. For a 49ers team trying to navigate a division that rarely offers much breathing room, it is the kind of development that forces an immediate reset of expectations.
The timing makes it even tougher to ignore because the 49ers are set to see the Rams first in Melbourne, Australia, a stage that will amplify whatever edge Los Angeles believes it has. San Francisco can still make its own case over the course of the season, but the matchup in front of it now looks like more than just an opener. It feels like an early test of whether the 49ers can keep pace in a division where the margin for error may already be shrinking. [Read more 🡒]