49ers: Mike Florio speculates that Kyle Shanahan may deliberately hide information from John Lynch

Keyword from the title: speculates.

I note that first because this seems to be complete speculation on the part of Mike Florio and isn't likely based on any insider information or knowledge of the situation.

With that said, the Pro Football Talk writer joined KNBR on Friday and discussed the situation surrounding Joe Staley's retirement and the trade for replacement Trent Williams. More specifically, Florio addressed the timing of the events and whether or not head coach Kyle Shanahan might have known about Staley's retirement before general manager John Lynch, and possibly kept it from him.

Florio, who seems to love a good conspiracy theory, doesn't buy that Lynch and the 49ers just learned about Staley's retirement last week, as the general manager has stated, and feels the team, or at least Shanahan, probably knew for some time that the 13-year veteran was calling it quits.

"There's also a chance that Kyle Shanahan factors into his broader planning the fact that John Lynch does have a tendency to be a little more transparent," Florio speculated during the Murph and Mac show. "I mean, it was Lynch who was on with Rich Eisen not long ago acknowledging that the 49ers spent a couple of days taking a hard look at whether or not they were going to pursue Tom Brady. They were taking it so seriously that they felt compelled to tell Jimmy Garoppolo about it.

"It could be that only Shanahan knew what was up with Staley. And it could be that, within the building, Shanahan was sending out signals that Staley was going to be back, knowing that if John Lynch knew what was going on, at some point, the truth was going to accidentally blurt out of his mouth."

Florio's thought process paints a picture of distrust on Shanahan's part when it comes to his partner, Lynch. It's something that hasn't come up before from those who closely follow the team, so feel free to take it for what it is worth.

"That's why I think, after three years of working with John Lynch, Kyle Shanahan realizes that he needs to be careful what he says to Lynch," said Florio while also noting that it isn't necessarily a knock on the general manager. Instead, he says it's just the way some NFL organizations work because they consist of differing personalities.

Added Florio: "Somebody has to be the grownup in the room, who understands the way the human beings operate and is operating at a level above that to kind of move the chess pieces accordingly. And with the 49ers, that's Kyle Shanahan."

Again, none of this sounds as if it is based on any kind of insider information, and is likely just Florio sharing his thoughts. Still, it is interesting to hear someone suggest that Shanahan may be keeping information from Lynch when everyone else has noted how harmonious the relationship between the two is, and how well they appear to work together.

You can listen to the entire conversation with Florio below.