49ers GM Lynch disputes Aiyuk trade reports; Purdy 'deadly' combo with Shanahan

Tight end George Kittle and cornerback Charvarius Ward underwent core-muscle surgery and should be fully healthy by training camp, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco reported. Both Kittle and Ward earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors.

“I’ve had that surgery myself when I was playing and it’s pretty a high success rate of healing and it feels a lot better once it’s done,” Lynch said. “It hurts constantly having that core tugging at you.”

Linebacker Dre Greenlaw is aiming to play in the season opener if all goes well in his recovery from an Achilles tear in the Super Bowl; Greenlaw could start training camp on the Physically Unable To Perform list and, if he remains on it in Week 1, he’d have to miss at least the first four games.

“De’Vondre (Campbell) gives us a guy who plays the way we play, a guy who has a ton of experience that can fill in for Dre if he’s not there,” Lynch said. “Then we have three guys who’ve played at a high level once Dre is back.”

Accounting penalty

Docked a 2025 fifth-round draft pick last week for an accounting error, Lynch said the 49ers mistakingly paid $75,000 extra to an unspecified player and unsuccessfully tried to recoup it rather than initially reporting their gaffe to the league prior to 2023, Maiocco reported.

Armstead exit

The 49ers granted defensive tackle Arik Armstead his release this month so he could test the market rather than get traded to the Houston Texans, subject to working out a new contract with them.

“Ultimately he wanted to see his value and good for him. It was robust with what he got in Jacksonville,” Lynch said. “He bet on himself and good for Arik. … Arik’s done so much for our team. He’s such a fabric of who we are, the work he does in the community. The opportunity to be on the 10-year wall was important to me and organization and Arik.”

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