The San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos are set to hold a third straight year of preseason joint practices, according to Broncos beat writer Mike Klis. The Broncos are traveling to face the 49ers the week of August 17-21. The dates of the practices will not be determined until the game date is finalized later this week.
Fooch’s update: The 49ers and Broncos confirmed the news.
The 49ers and Broncos conducted joint practices each of the last two seasons in Denver. This marks the third straight year, and the third straight different 49ers head coach. That being said, what is most interesting about this time around is that John Lynch is the 49ers general manager.
Since retiring, Lynch has worked in broadcasting, calling regular season games for FOX. However, the one-time Broncos safety also served as the preseason color commentator for the Broncos preseason broadcasts. He served in the same role Tim Ryan does for 49ers preseason games.
During his time in that role, Lynch got a chance to interact with John Elway, and the Broncos front office and coaching staff to prepare for the games. This likely boosted his relationship with Adam Peters, and was a good chance for him to do some talent evaluation. It’s not quite like finding players to sign in free agency or pick in the draft, but it’s some experience he did get in preparation for this eventual GM job.