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If you haven't read it already, I really suggest you dive into
Nick Wagoner's feature this morning for ESPN (h/t to Matthew Flanagan for pointing it out). It's a lengthy read, but you won't regret the time spent.
In the feature, the 49ers beat writer examines the relationship between old and new. When head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch took over the team in 2017, there seemed to be a gap between the current team and the legendary ones that came before it.
While Shanahan and Lynch wanted to rebuild the 49ers in their own way, they also desired to bridge that gap.
Since then, former players like Jerry Rice, Joe Montana, and Steve Young have been welcomed back with open arms. The players and the organization have embraced their presence.
Three years after Shanahan and Lynch took over, the 49ers are once again on the doorstep of a Super Bowl. They are one win away from a trip to Miami in February for a chance to hoist the organization's sixth Vince Lombardi Trophy.
History has accompanied the 49ers on this journey. As Wagoner points out, current players have ties to past ones. Third-year receiver Kendrick Bourne keeps in touch with the Hall of Famer receiver, Rice. Defensive tackle DeForest Buckner has bonded with legendary offensive lineman Jesse Sapolu. Second-year linebacker
Fred Warner has access to NaVorro Bowman.
In New England, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo sat and learned behind one of the greatest to ever play the game,
Tom Brady. How could anything else be more intimidating than that? Then Garoppolo was traded to San Francisco, where names like Montana, Young, and even John Brodie preceded him.
San Francisco has a quarterback legacy that is tough to follow.
Garoppolo "has an open line" to Young. Wagoner reports that, at one point this season, the Hall of Fame quarterback asked Garoppolo if the team's rich quarterback history felt like a weight.
It's doesn't. It's motivation.
"It pushes you," Garoppolo said. "It sets the standard for quarterback play. And the tradition that they've set here with the Niners, it's incredible."
Garoppolo is on the doorstep of cementing his own legacy. Many underestimated his impact following a devastating ACL injury last season. Still, here he is, ready to do what so many since Montana and Young have failed to accomplish — win a championship.
Click here to read Wagoner's entire feature over at ESPN.
It is less than two weeks away from the 2024 NFL Draft, and the San Francisco 49ers finally have a first-round draft pick, after not having one the last two years. Who will they select? Will it be a defensive player? An offensive player? They could use help on the offensive line and in the secondary and defensive line. And they may also have multiple holes to fill a year from now.
Either way, the 49ers need to hit on these draft picks, especially in the early rounds, where they haven't always been at their best. John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan have some first-round misses, like DT Solomon Thomas and LB Rueben Foster. But are those the worst first-round picks in team history? Neither made this list, though some will argue that Thomas should be on it, mainly because he was taken
The San Francisco 49ers announced the signing of wide receiver Trent Taylor to a one-year deal, reuniting with the team's former fifth-round draft pick out of Louisiana Tech.
Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area was the first to report that the 49ers were discussing a potential reunion with Taylor. The receiver was part of head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch's first draft class in 2017 and spent his first four NFL seasons with the team.
The #49ers are talking with free-agent slot receiver/return man
The San Francisco 49ers are hosting several draft prospects this week as the deadline for pre-draft visits draws near. According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2, the team will host former Western Kentucky wide receiver Malachi Corley on Wednesday.
Corley is expected to be a Day 2 pick. San Francisco owns two selections on Day 2—the No. 63 overall pick in the second round and the No. 94 overall pick in the third round. Currently, the receiver is visiting with the Seattle Seahawks.
Western Kentucky @WKUFootball receiver Malachi Worley
Ian Rapoport didn't offer much of an update on the ongoing contract negotiations between the San Francisco 49ers and their standout wide receiver, Brandon Aiyuk. However, the NFL insider emphasized one thing: The team is not entertaining trade discussions at this juncture.
Reacting to Aiyuk's decision to unfollow the 49ers on Instagram, Rapoport couldn't help but chuckle at the latest development. This practice has become commonplace among players who are unhappy with their contract situations. Wide receiver Deebo Samuel similarly took this action in 2022 before requesting to be traded just before the draft.
Things have yet to escalate that far with Aiyuk, but Rapoport sees his
