49ers must reunite with linebacker from 2019 season to boost their defense

The San Francisco 49ers lost a brutal game against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, and the Niners defense deserves a fair share of the blame.

They need to add depth to their linebacker corps with Dre Greenlaw out, which is why they should sign free agent Kwon Alexander.

Fans will remember Alexander from back in 2019 when he and the Niners went 13-3 in the regular season and went on to lose the Super Bowl.

Alexander did only play in eight games for San Francisco that year, but he still recorded 34 combined tackles, two tackles for a loss, and one interception in the regular season. He got healthy in time for the postseason and made some contributions, including one tackle and a pass deflected in the Super Bowl.

His injuries that season created an opportunity for Greenlaw, then a rookie but someone who fit in right away, to flourish while filling in. Of course, Greenlaw's most memorable moment that year came when he tackled Seattle Seahwaks tight end Jacon Hollister an inch before the goal line to clinch the No. 1 seed for the Niners in the final week of the regular season.

What an interesting twist of irony, it would be if Alexander now returned to the 49ers to fill in for Greenlaw while he recovers from the injury suffered in last February's Super Bowl.

The Niners need help among their linebacker corps right now. We know that Fred Warner is the best linebacker in the NFL, but De'Vondre Campbell and Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles are simply not cutting it. Campbell allowed an easy touchdown to the Rams on Sunday and then committed pass interference to allow Los Angeles to get into field-goal range and win the game. Flannigan-Fowles looked like he was playing on skates at one point in the game as he fell down trying to make a tackle when there was no one near him.

If the defense looks that poor against a team like the Rams when they are missing their top two players on offense, just imagine how bad the 49ers are going to look when they go up against a truly good offense.

Alexander is 30 years old, but he is currently drawing interest from the Minnesota Vikings who worked him out recently.

The Niners should probably give him a call and work him out this week to see what he has left in the tank. Something tells me it is as much as, if not more than, what Campbell currently has to offer.

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