Breaking: Lions Pull Off Stunning Signing on Eve of Monday Night Football: Former 49ers’ Linebacker Returns to Fire Old Team
On the eve of facing the San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Football, the Detroit Lions made a pair of roster moves to shore up their linebacking corp. The Lions promoted young defensive back Morice Norris to the active roster from the practice squad and signed former Niners linebacker Kwon Alexander to the practice squad to fill the open spot. Alexander had been released off the Lions practice squad earlier in the week.
Niners fans may remember Alexander as one of Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch’s sizable free agent investments early in their tenure. After spending the first four seasons of his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Alexander hit free agency as one of the top linebackers on the open market. Despite Alexander actively rehabbing a torn ACL, the Niners were willing to offer Alexander a sizable four-year contract with $25.5 million guaranteed.
Unfortunately, Alexander was never quite able to live up to expectations. Injuries limited him to just eight starts during his first year with the team, and he would ultimately only appear in 13 games with the Niners before he was traded to Payton and the Saints during the 2020 season. After spending a season and a half with the Saints, Alexander reunited with former 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh by joining the New York Jets in 2022. He appeared in all 17 games with the Jets, making 12 starts. Then, he joined the Steelers in 2023, appearing in 9 games and racking up 41 tackles.
This season, Alexander has appeared in 5 games (4 starts) between stints in Detroit and with the Broncos. Over his career, Alexander has appeared in 109 games (92 starts), recording 643 tackles, 54 tackles for loss, 34 passes defended, 31 quarterback hits, 13.5 sacks, 13 forced fumbles, and 9 interceptions.
