John Lynch - 49ers GM

Originally posted by RonMexico:

Wow! thats pretty harsh considering the guys picking have been to two superbowls in the last 7 years.

Originally posted by Giedi:

Originally posted by RonMexico:

Wow! thats pretty harsh considering the guys picking have been to two superbowls in the last 7 years.

Maybe if they drafted better they would have won one

lol

Originally posted by mcwoot:

Originally posted by Giedi:

Originally posted by RonMexico:

Wow! thats pretty harsh considering the guys picking have been to two superbowls in the last 7 years.

Maybe if they drafted better they would have won one

we went to 2 Super Bowls having the better team, Shanny just did not know what to do... the game plan sucked, actually, he had no game plan...

Also, we should have gone to 3 Super Bowls, McVay spotted him 10 pts with 1 time out left, and again, Shanny did not know what to do once the momentum was going to the. opposing teams.. He had no game plan, and did attack the Rams' weakness on D.. which was the LBs..

Originally posted by 9moon:

Originally posted by mcwoot:

Originally posted by Giedi:

Originally posted by RonMexico:

Wow! thats pretty harsh considering the guys picking have been to two superbowls in the last 7 years.

Maybe if they drafted better they would have won one

we went to 2 Super Bowls having the better team, Shanny just did not know what to do... the game plan sucked, actually, he had no game plan...

Also, we should have gone to 3 Super Bowls, McVay spotted him 10 pts with 1 time out left, and again, Shanny did not know what to do once the momentum was going to the. opposing teams.. He had no game plan, and did attack the Rams' weakness on D.. which was the LBs..

Agree with all that but if we had better players it might not have mattered

Originally posted by Heroism:

I evaluated the last 4 years of John Lynch drafts

his performance:

2023: #31
2024: #28
2025: #31
2026: #32

after the draft, Lynch claimed he knows better than everyone else

the data shows he doesn't

I went thru every single "reach" he made

it's grosshttps://t.co/lIiJ1aOWx9

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) April 26, 2026

Come defend this @hoovtrain

🤡

How Many of Lynch's Reaches Actually Paid Off? Let's evaluate all 16 non-2026 picks, one by one, with the largest reaches listed first:

Round 3 PK Jake Moody (2023) – expected at 275, taken at 99 Cut from the 49ers.

The single most emblematic pick of this era of 49ers drafting. San Francisco used a third-round pick (176 spots ahead of his projected value) on a kicker, making Moody just the second kicker selected in the top 100 in 15 years.

In 2024, he converted just 70.6% of his kicks, the second-worst rate among qualified NFL kickers.

Then in Week 1 of 2025, he went 1 for 3 against Seattle (one kick hit the upright from 27 yards), and the team cut him.

He bounced to the Bears' practice squad and then to Washington.

Burning a third-round pick on a kicker who couldn't make it through Week 1 of his third season is about as bad as it gets.

Round 3 LB Nick Martin (2025) – expected at 192, taken at 75Has done little to justify a third-round grade.

The 2025 rookie was buried on the depth chart all season.

Graded with a 50 by PFF, he registered just 15 total snaps last year.

Round 4 WR Jordan Watkins (2025) – expected at 304, taken at 138Watkins struggled with injuries early in his rookie season and never carved out a role.

He finished with 2 catches for 26 yards in four games.

Round 3 TE Cameron Latu (2023) – expected at 188, taken at 101 CUT.

San Francisco grabbed Latu 87 spots before his projected slot.

He tore his meniscus before the regular season began, was placed on injured reserve as a rookie, and never played a single regular-season snap for San Francisco in 2023.

The team waived him in August 2024.

Round 3 CB Upton Stout (2025) – expected at 173, taken at 100Among 114 CBs last year, Stout graded 75th in coverage and 59th overall per PFF.

Round 2 CB Renardo Green (2024) – expected at 110, taken at 64Among 114 CBs last year, Green graded 93rd in coverage and 92nd overall per PFF.

Round 5 S Marques Sigle (2025) – expected at 234, taken at 160Among 98 safeties last year, Sigle graded 96th in coverage and 96th overall per PFF

Round 2 DL Alfred Collins (2025) – expected at 61, taken at 43Collins has been buried in a revolving door of 49ers defensive linemen.

Taken as a second rounder, Collins massively underwhelmed.

Last year, out of 134 defensive linemen, Collins graded 123rd overall per PFF.

Round 5 EDGE Robert Beal Jr. (2023) – expected at 228, taken at 173 CUT.

Beal spent two-plus years with the 49ers as a special teams reserve and depth edge rusher, never developing into a legitimate rotational contributor.

Round 6 OG Jarrett Kingston (2024) – expected at 297, taken at 215 CUT.

Kingston never even made the 49ers roster.

He was waived in August 2024.

Round 4 RB Isaac Guerendo (2024) – expected at 164, taken at 129Aside from spot starts due to injury, Guerendo has been relegated to special teams or has been a healthy scratch.

He struggled with ball security, pass blocking, and vision.

He had 0 carries and 0 receptions in 2025.

Round 5 CB Darrell Luter Jr. (2023) – expected at 183, taken at 155Three years into his career, Luter remains primarily a special teams player.

He did not play enough snaps last year to be ranked, but his grade of 55.4 in coverage was well below satisfactory.

Round 7 TE Brayden Willis (2023) – expected at 276, taken at 247Long-time practice squad/fringe body who has been kept around almost entirely for his special teams work.

Round 4 WR Jacob Cowing (2024) – expected at 137, taken at 135Functioned almost entirely as a punt returner, not a receiver.

Cowing's offensive contribution was minimal in 2024, and he never developed into a legitimate target in the passing game.

He had 4 catches in 2024 and missed last year with a hamstring injury.

Round 7 QB Kurtis Rourke (2025) – expected at 230, taken at 22749ers' backup/emergency quarterback behind Brock Purdy, with Mac Jones ahead of him.

Sorry, stopped reading when i saw that the guy was talking about 2025 draftees.
Secondly, most of the players were taken end of day 2 or day 3. 99,9% of these players fail in the NFL, hence it doesn't matter who you take, guys like Kittle are as rare as a diamond.

Originally posted by Monsterniner:
The flaw with that is leaving Shanahan out of criticism because after 9 seasons, 10 free agency periods and 10 drafts we all know that he has a say on everything this FO does.

Shanahan is as guilty as Lynch.

Yeah I don't know why people think firing Lynch is going to solve anything. That's not to defend Lynch but he's clearly here to just do all the GM grunt work Kyle doesn't want to do. Reading between the lines it's pretty clear the coaches have more sway in the draft than they probably should.

I mean with as much sway as Shanahan has with York and the type of guy he is does anyone really believe he wouldn't have had Lynch fired if he truly was the one screwing up these drafts? In my opinion Kyle hasn't had Lynch fired because it would basically be saying Kyle is the one in the wrong since he's making the picks.

Originally posted by communist:

Originally posted by Heroism:

I evaluated the last 4 years of John Lynch drafts

his performance:

2023: #31
2024: #28
2025: #31
2026: #32

after the draft, Lynch claimed he knows better than everyone else

the data shows he doesn't

I went thru every single "reach" he made

it's grosshttps://t.co/lIiJ1aOWx9

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) April 26, 2026

Come defend this @hoovtrain

🤡

How Many of Lynch's Reaches Actually Paid Off? Let's evaluate all 16 non-2026 picks, one by one, with the largest reaches listed first:

Round 3 PK Jake Moody (2023) – expected at 275, taken at 99 Cut from the 49ers.

The single most emblematic pick of this era of 49ers drafting. San Francisco used a third-round pick (176 spots ahead of his projected value) on a kicker, making Moody just the second kicker selected in the top 100 in 15 years.

In 2024, he converted just 70.6% of his kicks, the second-worst rate among qualified NFL kickers.

Then in Week 1 of 2025, he went 1 for 3 against Seattle (one kick hit the upright from 27 yards), and the team cut him.

He bounced to the Bears' practice squad and then to Washington.

Burning a third-round pick on a kicker who couldn't make it through Week 1 of his third season is about as bad as it gets.

Round 3 LB Nick Martin (2025) – expected at 192, taken at 75Has done little to justify a third-round grade.

The 2025 rookie was buried on the depth chart all season.

Graded with a 50 by PFF, he registered just 15 total snaps last year.

Round 4 WR Jordan Watkins (2025) – expected at 304, taken at 138Watkins struggled with injuries early in his rookie season and never carved out a role.

He finished with 2 catches for 26 yards in four games.

Round 3 TE Cameron Latu (2023) – expected at 188, taken at 101 CUT.

San Francisco grabbed Latu 87 spots before his projected slot.

He tore his meniscus before the regular season began, was placed on injured reserve as a rookie, and never played a single regular-season snap for San Francisco in 2023.

The team waived him in August 2024.

Round 3 CB Upton Stout (2025) – expected at 173, taken at 100Among 114 CBs last year, Stout graded 75th in coverage and 59th overall per PFF.

Round 2 CB Renardo Green (2024) – expected at 110, taken at 64Among 114 CBs last year, Green graded 93rd in coverage and 92nd overall per PFF.

Round 5 S Marques Sigle (2025) – expected at 234, taken at 160Among 98 safeties last year, Sigle graded 96th in coverage and 96th overall per PFF

Round 2 DL Alfred Collins (2025) – expected at 61, taken at 43Collins has been buried in a revolving door of 49ers defensive linemen.

Taken as a second rounder, Collins massively underwhelmed.

Last year, out of 134 defensive linemen, Collins graded 123rd overall per PFF.

Round 5 EDGE Robert Beal Jr. (2023) – expected at 228, taken at 173 CUT.

Beal spent two-plus years with the 49ers as a special teams reserve and depth edge rusher, never developing into a legitimate rotational contributor.

Round 6 OG Jarrett Kingston (2024) – expected at 297, taken at 215 CUT.

Kingston never even made the 49ers roster.

He was waived in August 2024.

Round 4 RB Isaac Guerendo (2024) – expected at 164, taken at 129Aside from spot starts due to injury, Guerendo has been relegated to special teams or has been a healthy scratch.

He struggled with ball security, pass blocking, and vision.

He had 0 carries and 0 receptions in 2025.

Round 5 CB Darrell Luter Jr. (2023) – expected at 183, taken at 155Three years into his career, Luter remains primarily a special teams player.

He did not play enough snaps last year to be ranked, but his grade of 55.4 in coverage was well below satisfactory.

Round 7 TE Brayden Willis (2023) – expected at 276, taken at 247Long-time practice squad/fringe body who has been kept around almost entirely for his special teams work.

Round 4 WR Jacob Cowing (2024) – expected at 137, taken at 135Functioned almost entirely as a punt returner, not a receiver.

Cowing's offensive contribution was minimal in 2024, and he never developed into a legitimate target in the passing game.

He had 4 catches in 2024 and missed last year with a hamstring injury.

Round 7 QB Kurtis Rourke (2025) – expected at 230, taken at 22749ers' backup/emergency quarterback behind Brock Purdy, with Mac Jones ahead of him.

Sorry, stopped reading when i saw that the guy was talking about 2025 draftees.
Secondly, most of the players were taken end of day 2 or day 3. 99,9% of these players fail in the NFL, hence it doesn't matter who you take, guys like Kittle are as rare as a diamond.

The guy says he is specifically evaluating 2023-25 to avoid purdy?

I think there is a lot of legitimate criticism to the "reaching" allegations. And our recent drafts have really been frustrating.

But the way to prove it is to match our low round draft performance to other teams, adjusted for position in draft.

It makes sense that we will have less productive drafts than a team that drafts higher than us (closer to first pick)...it's a question of how much worse.

And again, it's not just the "reaching"

Its our utter and complete lack of prioritization of positional need that makes us hapless.

For example/ no safety, no IOL in draft. Prioritizing rb and wr before DT and OL.

If you look at our draft positionally, if the positions taken in each half were swapped (2-3 with 4-6) (and different player selections made accordingly), there would be a lot less blow back.

We are very obtuse at addressing and prioritizing position based needs.

Hey, NFL.com gave us an A-.

For all 32 teams, the lowest grade I saw was a C.

There's a few B-, everything else between A+ and B. Lol.

13 of the 32 teams received an A- or higher. Including us. Lol

NFL.COM basically has a 6 tier rating system:

A+
A
A-
B+
B
Everything else.

We got a A- based on the fact we didn't take anyone in the first round.

Smaht.

For example, we didn't take Lomu in the first round (although we took two tackles later).
And we didn't take Cooper in the first round (although we drafted a better run blocking wr six picks later)

etc

Originally posted by DRnSFw:

#49ERS REPORTER GRANT COHN ASKED GM JOHN LYNCH & HC KYLE SHANAHAN WHY THEY REACH FOR PLAYERS IN THE DRAFT EVERY YEAR.

THIS IS DIABOLICAL 💀💀💀 pic.twitter.com/kVmmYzmdcc

— MLFootball (@MLFootball) April 26, 2026

lol

Look at lynchie during shannys long long explanation, answering his question.

Originally posted by Jikkle49:
Yeah I don't know why people think firing Lynch is going to solve anything. That's not to defend Lynch but he's clearly here to just do all the GM grunt work Kyle doesn't want to do. Reading between the lines it's pretty clear the coaches have more sway in the draft than they probably should.

I mean with as much sway as Shanahan has with York and the type of guy he is does anyone really believe he wouldn't have had Lynch fired if he truly was the one screwing up these drafts? In my opinion Kyle hasn't had Lynch fired because it would basically be saying Kyle is the one in the wrong since he's making the picks.

Lol the reason they haven't been fired is cause outside of major injury riddled seasons, they are in contention for the SB.

They've had some bad drafts and made historically bad draft choices (not even looking at the qbs in 2017 cause they thought they had Kirk cousins… insane, the Lance trade… insane). Etc

but they ultimately field a competitive team and have also had some major hits in the draft. If you can get 2 quality starters and a couple quality rotational players from a draft, that's a success. Almost all of the players in this draft will be out of the league in 3 years or floating around on practice squads. We just have to wait and see how it goes. Hopefully we got a few jewels that become players we never expected (positive way)

Originally posted by brodiebluebanaszak:

Originally posted by DRnSFw:

#49ERS REPORTER GRANT COHN ASKED GM JOHN LYNCH & HC KYLE SHANAHAN WHY THEY REACH FOR PLAYERS IN THE DRAFT EVERY YEAR.

THIS IS DIABOLICAL 💀💀💀 pic.twitter.com/kVmmYzmdcc

— MLFootball (@MLFootball) April 26, 2026

lol

Look at lynchie during shannys long long explanation, answering his question.

Kinda reiterates who's the boss lol. I hate Cohen, but he did a solid here for once. You can tell they hate his guts 😂 oddly enough I get a sense Grant actually really likes both of them, but he has to make a living the only way he knows how.

If they had been drafting well we wouldn't be having the thread and media active like this. They really have not drafted well in recent years. Certainly not like their earlier years. So all this criticism isn't surprising to me.

Cohn made a career decision a long time ago to be the acidic antagonist, he isn't intelligent enough to offer meaningful insight/analysis so he leveraged what skills he had to make a career off the business opportunity his daddy gave to him... I know Timmy K isn't popular on this board, but he always has a unique angle, interesting insights, is an excellent writer and is always worth a read.

Who cares when a player was drafted? Would it not count as a bad pick of they took the 78th best player at pick 120 and they cut him two years later? 49ers haven't drafted great. Most teams don't draft great. And even when you do hit it can still not work out. Jets traded 3rd overall pick in 2019 & 4x Pro Bowler Quinnen Williams to Dallas last season.

Originally posted by mcwoot:
Maybe if they drafted better they would have won one

Well I agree somewhat. The Trey Lance bust contributed to the Superbowl loss for sure. The first round misfires etc... personally, I think the loss of Saleh and Demeco affects not only Kyle's drafts but also Kyle's defenses. Kyle was in the lead in points in both Superbowl's but his defenses let him down.

Walsh's defense never let his team down. Seifert stuck with Walsh for his entire tenure the way Spagnuolo has stuck with Fat Andy during his tenure with KC. Oh well. Kyle just needs to find his Seifert 2.0 and he'll start winning those games - in my opinion.