There were offseason rumors that some inside the San Francisco 49ers offices were split on who to draft at quarterback. Some wondered if head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch didn't see eye-to-eye.
"Someone told me yesterday—not an NFL head coach—but someone told me that there is a conversation in the building that Kyle wants X and maybe Lynch wants Y," said Michael Lombardi of The Athletic leading to the draft.
It turned out that both Shanahan and Lynch liked Trey Lance from the start, and the former North Dakota State quarterback was always the frontrunner in their minds. That is, of course, according to Shanahan and Lynch.
Ran Carthon, the team's new director of player personnel, says any rumors of conflict among the team's top decision-makers couldn't be further from the truth. Carthon took on Adam Peters' role when Peters was promoted to assistant general manager. According to Michael Holley of NBC Sports, both are considered to be on track for future general manager jobs.
"We all speak the same language," Carthon told Holley. "John and Kyle are unbelievable in how they see the same things conceptually. And in scouting, we know exactly what they're looking for."
When Holley looks at the 49ers, he sees an organization with personnel in sync when it comes to building a successful team.
"I think the San Francisco 49ers are perfectly aligned on their view of the organization," wrote Holley. "I'm not talking about being right; I'm talking about a unified vision of how to build a team, from the top of football operations to the least experienced scout."
As for Carthon, he is living out a childhood dream.
"I used to buy Athlon Magazine, tape every NFL draft, and make my own draft choices for every team," Carthon said. "Honestly, this is what my dad [Maurice Carthon] always wanted to do. He thought of working in personnel, but Bill Parcells asked him to coach [with the Patriots] and it started from there. He put personnel in my head early, and it stuck."
