“24 Hours” follows 49ers GM John Lynch on his first draft day

San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch was the subject of TheMMQB's latest edition of "24 Hours" – a web series featuring episodes covering a full day with an important person in the football world. Its day with Lynch took place on what was perhaps his most important day on the job yet – the day of the 2017 NFL Draft. It was the 49ers general manager's first draft with the team and his first as an NFL executive.



The 49ers' draft class and Lynch's handling of the entire process has been well-received by analysts and other members of the media. The 49ers ended up acquiring two of the top three players on their draft board in defensive lineman Solomon Thomas out of Stanford and linebacker Reuben Foster out of Alabama. What really impressed was the ability of those within the 49ers' draft room to trade and acquire additional picks while doing so.

TheMMQB, which is part of Sports Illustrated, has already provided a good look inside the 49ers' draft room. Writer Peter King was embedded within the room during the entire three-day process and chronicled the first draft by the duo of Lynch and new head coach Kyle Shanahan. King released a fantastic article on the following Monday that gave fans an inside look at the crazy three days from within the room. It was the type of access that most fans never get to hear about and a must-read that created a lot of buzz upon its release.

King followed that up with an informative piece that looked at a couple of "under-the-radar personnel" who contributed greatly to the 49ers' draft efforts.

The Sports Illustrated group keeps the unique 49ers coverage coming. In the latest installment of the "24 Hours" series, they follow Lynch on his first draft day.

24 Hours … With John Lynch

The video is accompanied by an article that takes the fan even deeper into the day spent with Lynch. Below are some key nuggets from the article.

• The article reaffirms that Lynch and the 49ers would have selected Foster with their first selection if Thomas was off the board.
• The below draft morning tweet by Lynch was actually the first sent out by the 49ers general manager himself. The previous ones had been sent from his account by vice president of communications Bob Lange on Lynch's behalf.
• Lynch believes that you should meet with any player who you release. "I don't care if it's the back end of the roster, you and I both should meet with them," Lynch said. "It's a tough deal when your dreams are shattered."
• "We can't let anyone in that room tonight see any hesitation between us," Lynch told Shanahan prior to the draft.
• The 49ers had no intention of staying put at the number two or number 34 spot. They wanted to move down from two and up from 34. They ended up doing both.
• Running back Christian McCaffrey, wide receiver John Ross, safety Jabrill Peppers, and edge rushers Charles Harris, T.J. Watt or Takkarist McKinley were possible targets if the 49ers traded into the area between selections eight and 15.
• Following the trade down from number two, Atlanta Falcons assistant general manager Scott Pioli and Miami Dolphins executive vice president of football operations Mike Tannenbaum texted Lynch to compliment him on the deal.
• Foster was a 49ers fan as a kid and a Patrick Willis fan in high school.
• "Check back in three to five years," Lynch said following the first round. "But we just got two game-changing players."

Previous episodes of "24 Hours" followed now-Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes leading up to his pro day and ESPN insider Adam Schefter during the first day of NFL free agency.