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San Francisco 49ers: Grading John Lynch’s first year as general manager

By Peter Panacy

LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 31: General Manager John Lynch of the San Francisco 49ers looks on from the sidelines during the second half of a game against the Los Angeles Rams at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on December 31, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 31: General Manager John Lynch of the San Francisco 49ers looks on from the sidelines during the second half of a game against the Los Angeles Rams at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on December 31, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /
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SANTA CLARA, CA – DECEMBER 17: Defensive back K’Waun Williams #24 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrates after his team recovered a fumble against the Tennessee Titans during the second quarter at Levis Stadium on December 17, 2017 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Jason O. Watson/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA – DECEMBER 17: Defensive back K’Waun Williams #24 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrates after his team recovered a fumble against the Tennessee Titans during the second quarter at Levis Stadium on December 17, 2017 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Jason O. Watson/Getty Images) /

B+. . John Lynch. San Francisco 49ers. 2017 OFFSEASON FREE AGENCY

John lynch didn’t waste any time making changes to the 49ers roster from the Trent Baalke era, bringing in cornerback K’Waun Williams and nose tackle Earl Mitchell in late February. This was paired with releasing high-profile veterans, like wide receiver Torrey Smith and safety Antoine Bethea.

When NFL free agency officially began, though, Lynch was perhaps one of the most aggressive GMs out there, prompting a pretty accurate gif from us here at Niner Noise:

San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers /

San Francisco 49ers

Notable 49ers Offseason Free Agents

  • CB K’Waun Williams
  • NT Earl Mitchell
  • WR Pierre Garçon
  • FB Kyle Juszczyk
  • QB Brian Hoyer
  • WR Marquise Goodwin
  • K Robbie Gould
  • LB Malcolm Smith

Williams had his issues early in the season (possibly due to missing all of 2016) but ended up finishing with a respectable 80.2 overall grade on the season, per Pro Football Focus, justifying the three-year extension the nickel corner received in the middle of 2017.

Solid move.

And Mitchell ended up being a key cog in a 49ers run defense that allowed a full yard less on the ground in 2017 (3.8 yards per carry) than the previous year.

Offensively, the Niners landed a number of veterans familiar with head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense. Wide receiver Pierre Garçon was on pace to hit 1,000 yards receiving before a season-ending neck injury cut his campaign short. Fullback Kyle Juszczyk ended up being the team’s lone Pro Bowl representative too.

Meanwhile, wide receiver Marquise Goodwin ended up with a career-high 962 receiving yards, proving he was just more than a speedster.

We didn’t get to see linebacker Malcolm Smith (injured reserve, pectoral) this season, so that’s an incomplete grade.

The only thing holding this class back from an A-grade was the fact quarterback Brian Hoyer simply didn’t cut it in a starting role, completing just 58.0 percent of his  passes in a San Francisco uniform.

Overall, though, Lynch’s 2018 free-agent group vastly improved the blue-chip area of the roster, and he has to receive a lot of credit for said efforts.