49ers’ Lynch ready to hit road
On novice GM’s to-do list: Find a quarterback
Six weeks into his whirlwind initiation as an NFL general manager, John Lynch considers it a benefit that he can think like a quarterback while proceeding on his first quarterback campus tour.
Lynch made his mark in the league as an all-pro safety. But the first time he moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, in the late 1980s, he attended Stanford as a quarterback.
“I know the thought process,” Lynch, groomed as a backup quarterback for two years in Palo Alto, told USA TODAY Sports. “It helps me in this world I’m living in now.”
After an impressive start to free agency, Lynch will team with rookie coach Kyle Shanahan to lead the San Francisco 49ers contingent for glimpses this week at arguably the three best passing prospects in the draft. They will hit North Carolina’s pro day Tuesday for a look at Mitch Trubisky, then head to Clemson and collaborate with another (undisclosed) team to put Deshaun Watson through a workout Wednesday. Then it’s off to Notre Dame, where DeShone Kizer will be on display.
Passing mechanics and physical attributes will be observed at each stop. But Lynch will be just as eager to connect on that quarterback wavelength with each prospect. With the second pick in the draft, it’s possible the 49ers could soon meet the next face of their franchise.
“The opportunity to spend some time with the guys is so important,” Lynch said.
Shanahan, previously the Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator, will drive the Niners’ quarterbacking agenda. As Lynch puts it, “It’s his quarterback. He’s also the play-caller. He knows exactly what he wants.”
Yet part of Lynch’s learning curve includes getting on the same page with Shanahan in identifying what the coach calls “WIT” — what it takes — players at every position. That Lynch reflects on his own days at quarterback, though, tells you something about his sense of WIT amid an opportunity granted without traditional training. He is drawing on anything and everything.
It figures. While there are hundreds of personnel people across the NFL who have spent entire careers working to land a GM gig, Lynch, 45, was hired from the Fox broadcast booth. As if merely trying to revive a moribund franchise isn’t enough, his exhilarating opportunity is, at least for now, balanced by the question of whether he’s worthy. Even though he has a ton of insight from years as a player and a broadcaster — and the security of a six-year contract — there’s a realization that it takes time to win big yet pressure to effectively navigate his first draft.
“I can see where someone is cynical,” he said. “The only way you answer that is with your results.”
Coming off a 2-14 season, the once-proud 49ers — now on their fourth coach in four years — are banking on Lynch to produce the type of results that his pal, John Elway, has had with the Denver Broncos or that Ozzie Newsome has achieved with the Baltimore Ravens. Newsome and Elway are gold standards for the manner in which they followed Hall of Fame playing careers to build Super Bowl teams from the front office. Newsome began as a scout, while Elway ran an Arena League team.
At the opposite extreme is Matt Millen, the former linebacker who flopped as GM of the Detroit Lions after also being hired from Fox with no experience. Lynch and Millen have already spoken.
“We had some good laughs,” Lynch said. “I told him I’m proud when people compare us.”
One of Lynch’s first hires was Martin Mayhew as senior personnel executive. Lynch also tapped Adam Peters off Elway’s staff as vice president of personnel.
“Where I lack experience, they make up for it,” Lynch said.
Meanwhile, executive vice president Paraag Marathe continues to lead San Francisco’s contract talks and salary cap management. These pillars of support for Lynch are critical. Elway told him, “You’ve got to know what you don’t know.”
Lynch seems to be learning fast, his first free agent haul headlined by receiver Pierre Garcon, quarterback Brian Hoyer, linebacker Malcolm Smith and fullback Kyle Juszczyk. Center Jeremy Zuttah was obtained in a trade with the Ravens.
Only four years ago, the Niners were coming off a Super Bowl appearance under Jim Harbaugh. Then it all crumbled, with Harbaugh leaving, the talent pool drained and the energy zapped.
Now the roster overhaul is underway. The 49ers retain a league-high amount of cap space, roughly $70 million, with the pledge from CEO Jed York to keep the cash flowing in the coming years, too.
“We still have to be prudent,” Lynch said.
And eventually they must win, too.