Three days, three hours and 45 minutes (at least from the time I started writing) until the 2017 NFL Draft. It’s so close, we can almost taste it. Three days until we welcome…well I’m not sure who we’re going to welcome, but somebody good is coming to the San Francisco 49ers.
Over the last several years, we’ve known exactly who the 49ers were taking with their first pick, but this year, it’s a new regime and it’s anybody’s guess. And of course, they could still trade back. It’s all a mystery.
“There’s been interest,” said general manager John Lynch. “…When you have a pick that high, I think that’s natural…I can tell you that we feel really good about where we’re at with the number two pick in terms of us narrowing down options and feeling really good about where we’re at. But, I’ve been very transparent from the beginning that we’ll listen…We’re going to listen right up until draft day, but otherwise we’re going to pick a player at two that we feel is a cornerstone for this franchise for years to come and we’ll be very passionate about that pick and what that player can do for us moving forward.”
As to the reports from Ian Rappaport and others that QB Mitchell Trubisky will be the subject of that passion, well, maybe yes, maybe no, but Lynch says that’s not coming from the building.
“…I think the discipline out of this building’s been excellent,” said Lynch. “…I think in each situation it says sources. I don’t know who those sources are because there’s only a few people that know and so we feel real good about that.”
The thing with this draft is beyond Myles Garrett at one, there is not a huge difference between the players that will go at picks two through eight. For a team that needs just about everything, several players could go at two and be a benefit to this team.
“I would say that’s fair,” said Lynch. “I think we tried to create an environment that’s collaborative, where people can be confident in sharing their opinions, and we had strong opinions, and they didn’t always agree, but we’ve gotten to a point where there’s consensus. Ultimately, it will be Kyle [Shanahan] and I together making those decisions and that’s kind of where we are this week.”
And what happens if he and Shanahan disagree? Is there a process in place to break the tie?
“I’m not trying to cop out, but it’s going to be collective,” said Lynch. “Kyle and I made a commitment early on that we’re going to come into this thing and we figured out our own way to have our tie breaker. It’s not something that we’ve just kind of put aside and come Thursday night like, ‘What do you want to do?’ ‘I don’t know. What do you want to do?’ We’ve got a plan. I can tell you that.”
In recent days, it has come to light that both Reuben Foster and Jabrill Peppers had positive drug tests at the NFL Combine. For a team that’s spoken extensively about character, these types of issues can affect draft selection, but not always.
“…[I]f you’re looking for a bunch of choir boys, it’s not going to happen,” said Lynch. “It’d be hard to fill a team, but we believe in football character. Do they love football? Are they dependable? Are they accountable? Those type of things. And so, I think each circumstance, each player, deserves and will get looked at in a unique and thorough way and that’s what we’ll do there.”
For a man who is three days away from his first draft as the GM of a team in the National Football League, Lynch seems incredibly calm, collected and confident. And it exudes confidence. Lynch talked a lot about preparation, and it’s clear that he is indeed prepared.
“I believe in preparation to be great at anything,” said Lynch. “You better put your work in and I worked really hard at that. So, I watched a ton of film on every side of the football as well and even though it’s through a difference lens, I think it was extremely helpful. It also gave me kind of a global outlook on the league. The one thing I would tell you, I hadn’t watched as much college football because I was so focused on my NFL job other than watching a team up north here that I have a great affinity for…And at some point, we’ve got just under 200 players on our draft board, that we see as draftable players on our board…I’ve been spending a lot of time in here and it was needed this year because I had a lot of catch-up to do. I can tell you that just last night I finally got to the point, I always knew as a player like, ‘OK. I’m ready.’ That moment was yesterday for me where I said, ‘OK. I’m ready. I’m ready to go on this thing.’ That’s a good feeling.”
It’s a good feeling for all of us. Bring it NFL Draft. We got some rebuilding to do.
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