San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch joined Bay Area radio station KNBR on Thursday morning to discuss the team's latest move—acquiring former New England Patriots defensive end Keion White—and whether more trades could be on the way before the NFL trade deadline on November 4.
Lynch said there was clear alignment within the 49ers organization regarding the move for White.
"When we have alignment, we really hit at a high rate," Lynch said. "It's something that scouting, way back to the draft process, really had an affinity for Keion, and his game, and what he could do for us. Then you watch him develop. He played extremely well last year, played very well against us, so those things tend to stick with you and make an impression upon you.
"We followed him through. Mike Vrabel came in, and that sometimes happens with new coaching staffs. He's a really good player, but he doesn't quite fit with what they were doing, and so, he wasn't playing as much this year. But our analytics liked them. And then, you bring it downstairs to our coaches, and they're huge fans."
Lynch explained that the 49ers explored several trade possibilities leading up to the move, emphasizing the importance of gathering as much information as possible about the players they targeted.
"At the end, I called [Patriots head coach] Mike Vrabel and just, 'Hey, man, tell me what happened.' And Mike kind of gave me that," Lynch recalled. "I've known Mike for a long time, and we felt comfortable and felt like he's a guy who could really help us.
"And the cool thing about Keion, he's got this year and he's got next year, so it's not just a rental. It's a guy we can have as part of our program for a while, that we think we can really untap some of his limitless potential, so we're excited about it. Now, Keion's got to assimilate really quickly."
One person who can't wait to install White into the 49ers' defense is coordinator Robert Saleh.
"Robert's really excited," Lynch shared. "There's edge guys, and one of the roles we have is a big end. And that essentially means a guy who, in base downs, can play outside, and then he can slide and rush over guards. Basically, it means he has some versatility to his game, and we really like that. We've done well with that in the past.
"And so, it's a cool opportunity to add a very talented, versatile player that we've had our eye on for a while."
Are the 49ers done making trade moves?
As for whether 49ers fans can expect more trades before the deadline, Lynch didn't rule anything out — but he suggested the team is mostly content with where it stands.
"I'll never say never because we still have some time left on this deadline," Lynch said. "But we're also in a situation where we really kind of had a, at the end, you sit down and say, 'Okay, what are we looking for?' We weren't completely opposed to it, but we'd like for whoever we trade for to be here for more than just the remainder of this year. So, you get some opportunity of time working in.
"And then, we also want to keep our draft [picks]. I think we just saw what we could do with a lot of draft picks. We have that next year as well, and we don't want to eat into that too much. But we also wanted to bolster our team for this year, and we feel like we've done that."
Lynch also noted that the return of defensive end Bryce Huff will further bolster the team's defensive line.
"We'll also get [DE Bryce] Huff back at some point here, and I think it can become a good group," Lynch added. "We need to play better there. And I think this sometimes can be the thing that gives life to everyone and makes everyone a little better, and hopefully can have that effect."