On Wednesday, the NFL announced the 2023 Pro Bowl Games rosters. Six players will represent the San Francisco 49ers on the NFC roster. They are defensive end Nick Bosa, safety Talanoa Hufanga, fullback Kyle Juszczyk, tight end George Kittle, linebacker Fred Warner, and tackle Trent Williams.
Additionally, seven 49ers players were listed as alternates, including star running back Christian McCaffrey, who was acquired via a trade in October. His absence from the NFC roster was a bit surprising to fans. After all, McCaffrey has racked up 1,550 all-purpose yards and 10 total touchdowns this season.
Absent from even the list of alternates was linebacker Dre Greenlaw, who leads the team this season with 111 tackles.
John Lynch joined KNBR on Thursday morning and admitted that it was pretty special to inform the selected players, especially Hufanga, who earned his first Pro Bowl selection. However, the general manager also commented on the 49ers players who were snubbed in the selection process.
"I told Dre, 'Don't you worry about that,'" Lynch told Markus Boucher and Marcus Thompson during the radio interview. "Usually, the flow with the Pro Bowl is the first year you really should make it, you often don't. But you send notice around the league, and I promise you, if Dre keeps playing like this, the Pro Bowl is going to be the least of his accolades. I mean, he is playing some tremendous football.
"Obviously, Christian McCaffrey, his play speaks for itself. We're a completely different team on offense since he's been here. I thought Christian should have been a part of that team. [CB] Charvarius Ward [too]."
Ward, the 49ers' big offseason free-agent acquisition, has proved his worth this season. He has played at a high level, going against opponents' top receiving threats week in and week out. Ward has not missed a single tackle this season, per Pro Football Focus, and his 83.1 overall grade from the analytics site is a career-high.
Last week against Seattle, a frustrated DK Metcalf was limited to just four receptions for 33 yards while the Seahawks' star receiver went one-on-one with Ward.
"There's a lot of guys that were deserving, but that (not being selected) always happens," Lynch continued. "So I think you just understand, while it is a tremendous honor, that we've got bigger things in our sights, and I think our guys all recognize that."
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