Before the 2024 season even started, Bryce Huff had a feeling his time in Philadelphia likely wasn't going to go well.
The pass rusher, who was traded from the Philadelphia Eagles to the San Francisco 49ers this offseason, told Brad Graham on "The SFNiners" podcast last week he didn't feel like a good fit in Vic Fangio's defense from training camp.
"If I'm being 100% honest with you, I wanted a trade like fairly early on," he said. "And just 'cause of how things went in Philly, I knew pretty early on it wasn't a fit.
"There's a plethora of things that went down. I don't wanna get into specifics. Being in the league for five years, I kinda knew what it felt like to be in a good situation. ... I kind of knew where it was headed fairly early on into the season, probably even training camp if I'm being honest."
After generating 10 sacks and one of the best pressure rates in the NFL in 2023 as a rotational pass rusher with the New York Jets, Huff inked a three-year, $51.1 million deal in Philly last offseason. Things were wobbly from the start in Fangio's defense. Huff had just two total tackles through the first four weeks of the season and didn't get into the sack column until Week 5 (half a sack). In 12 games, the edge earned 2.5 QB takedowns and 13 total tackles.
Huff missed five weeks with a torn ligament in his wrist. He was inactive for the Eagles' Super Bowl win over the Kansas City Chiefs.
Philly unloaded him in a post-June 1 trade to San Francisco, where Huff rejoins defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. The 27-year-old is pumped to play in a defense that he knows well.
"Coach Saleh did a great job lining all that up for us in New York, and I saw a lot of guys elevate themselves throughout my three years with them," Huff said, via 49ers Web Zone. "So I'm extremely excited to be back here in San Fran. I know last year wasn't my best season at all in Philly, and I had a lot of stuff going down, but one thing led to another, and I got that call from my agent when the trade window opened up and I was on a plane to Santa Clara. So I'm extremely excited to be here.
"I've been here working with the same staff that took me from a basic player to like top of the league in pressure rate, top of the league in win rate, sacks, and whatnot. So I've been here putting in the same work that I put in all those years this summer, and I'm gonna be here until the first day of camp. So I'm excited to see how everything plays out this year with being back in Coach Saleh's scheme and being back with this performance staff."
All-Pro Nick Bosa leads the Niners' pass rush, and the club also used a first-round pick on Mykel Williams. Their presence should allow Huff to fit back into that situational pass-rush role that he thrived in under Saleh's defense in New York.
