NFC Notes: 49ers, Buccaneers, Lions

49ers

• Ian Rapoport reports that 49ers LB Kwon Alexander played through biceps injury in addition to the torn pectoral he dealt with last year.
• Alexander underwent surgery on his bicep Friday and is expected to make a full recovery for the start of the 2020 season. 
• Rapoport also notes that Alexander’s 2020 salary becomes fully guaranteed on April 1, meaning he will be back with the organization for next season.  

Buccaneers

Buccaneers’ head coach Bruce Arians said on Thursday that the team is still undecided on whether or not to retain quarterback Jameis Winston. Arians also added that the team probably won’t know until the start of the free-agent tampering period on March 16.

“Really nothing has changed,” Arians said via Rick Stroud of TampaBay.com. “What’s Door No. 2? You know? Can we make the one we have better? All those things you go through right now.”

Arians was vocal about his desire to retain as many defensive starters as possible, noting that the team will be “back to square one” if they are unable to keep players such as linebacker Shaquil Barrett, who led the NFL with 19.5 sacks.

“To me, it’s the whole defense,” Arians said about the potential free agent group. “We can’t get them all, but we’ve got to get (most of them). This team right now, the last eight games our defensive statistics … those young guys grew. We can’t let that go. I don’t care who is playing quarterback, we’re going to have a defense.”

Other notable starters who could become unrestricted free agents include linebacker Jason Pierre-Paul, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, and linebacker Carl Nassib.

Lions

Bernie Smilovitz of Local 4 says he’s standing by his report that the Lions engaged in trade talks involving QB Matthew Stafford in recent weeks.

“The Detroit Lions have denied Local 4′s report that they’ve been engaged in trade talks with quarterback Matthew Stafford for the past few weeks,” Smilovitz writes. “We stand by our story and by our sources. We find tremendous validity in what we are reporting because of what Kelly Stafford posted on Instagram. Before our report was made, she posted that if Detroit was done with her husband, then they would like to go to the Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers need a quarterback after Philip Rivers left.

“The fact that Kelly posted that before our report tells us things were going behind the scenes, and our sources later confirmed it. Again, we are only reporting trade talks for Stafford and those talks have definitely taken place.”