49ers CEO Jed York isn’t in a hurry to move on from the tandem of general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan. He gave the pair a vote of confidence Monday when talking to reporters at the NFL owners meetings, and the nature of his comments could give some insight into how the 49ers will approach this year’s draft.
York made it clear Lynch and Shanahan were still going to be given time to construct a contender despite notching only 10 wins the last two seasons, and losing streaks of six and nine games in those years.
“And I feel very, very good about the team those guys are putting together,” York said according to Matt Barrows of the Athletic. “It’s a big reason why we did six-year deals with them, knowing that — first-time head coach, first-time general manager — we had had a lot of instability before they had gotten there. And I wanted to send a message to them and to our fans, send a message to our players on the roster and potential free agents going forward that these guys were probably not going to get it all right in the first year or first two years, that this is something we were going to try to build. And I believe that we have a very good foundation. And I think the future is bright for them.”
This level of confidence from York to let his front office and head coach iron out solutions to the myriad issues they were handed when they arrived in San Francisco just two seasons ago is a good sign for the 49ers’ health long-term.
Quick-fix solutions didn’t work as the team tried to piece together a contender after their run of three consecutive NFC championship game appearances ended after the 2014 season. It was chaos for that 2014 campaign, and the two years after it. Only after Lynch and Shanahan arrive did the 49ers finally find some stability. Ousting the two after two or three seasons would only breed more turmoil.
What this does is allow Lynch and Shanahan to attack the 2019 draft with a view that goes beyond this season. They’re able to make moves with a two, three or four-year plan in mind.
The pressure to put a contender on the field right away might lead to some irrational moves that ultimately set the team back in an effort to win now.
That’s why they’re open to trading down to accumulate more picks, or simply taking the best player available. The ability to operate in the draft knowing there’s a three or four-year plan being executed makes life much easier on a front office. It also gives them the freedom to zoom out and take stock of the entire draft class with a more critical eye.
They’re looking for the right players, not the singular player who’s going to win them a Super Bowl this year. Finding that player is obviously ideal, but they can be more deliberate in the way they go about tracking him down.
There will certainly be an expectation to at least be in the hunt for a playoff spot, if not securing one this year. However, York is approaching it the right way in viewing the Lynch-Shanahan regime as a process built and polished and tinkered with over the course of a decade or more. It’s not just a duo put in place to try and win as quickly as possible.
Winning is the ultimate goal every season. York, the front office, and the coaching staff will expect victories this year. It’s not going to make or break the GM and head coach’s job security though, and that will ultimately benefit them down the road.
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