While the San Francisco 49ers made many changes to their roster this offseason, they decided to lock down linebacker Fred Warner for the foreseeable future, giving him a three-year, $63 million extension in May that made him the highest-paid linebacker in the league.
Warner is deserving of the extension, and the 49ers aren’t the only ones who believe that he’s the best in the league at what he does. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler recently released his annual linebacker rankings which is voted on by NFL executives, coaches and scouts, and Warner earned the top spot.
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“I think Fred has gotten much more productive defeating core blocks and tackling with more physicality,” an NFL coordinator said. “He’s always been the best in the world in the passing game — range, instincts, ball production. But he was incredible last year, and then you factor that with the forced takeaways, durability, and all the other rare intangibles, he’s the best.”
The 49ers took Warner in the third round of the 2018 NFL draft out of BYU and since then he’s been a starter in the middle of their defense, recording 897 tackles (36 for a loss), 53 passes defensed, 15 forced fumbles, 10 sacks, 10 interceptions and six fumbles recovered. He’s also made four Pro Bowls and has earned All-Pro honors four times.
The 28-year-old was also ranked first in last year’s poll, and interestingly, no voter ranked him lower than second heading into 2025.
Behind Warner in the rankings, Baltimore’s Roquan Smith, Philadelphia’s Zack Baun, Kansas City’s Nick Bolton, Washington’s Frankie Luvu, Chicago’s Tremaine Edmunds, Tampa Bay’s Lavonte David, Dallas’ DeMarvion Overshown, Denver’s Dre Greenlaw (former 49er) and New York’s Quincy Williams rounded out the top 10.
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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers’ Fred Warner earns top spot in 2025 linebacker rankings