John Lynch is just out of control. Yet another experienced hire with Ron Carthon to circle around the wealth of executives. All of these guys are smarter than Lynch, all of these guys bring something to the table that Lynch doesn’t—and Lynch is much smarter for hiring all of them.
A few of these shiny new executives may depart for GM jobs in the not too distant future, but not before Lynch has a chance to learn everything he knows from them. These hires were as much for him to get as much via osmosis as it was for them to have a quick promotion on their way to a vacant GM gig.
And once they leave (Adam Peters is my first guess of a GM candidate), Lynch will do what he’s been doing: find someone else smarter than him to replace the vacancy. Even when (and if) Lynch learns everything he needs to know about this job, this indicates he’ll continue hiring the best, not the best for him.
There’s two types of superiors in the workforce: bosses and leaders. With bosses, a very common theme with many (not all) is one who will shy away from the best due to their own insecurities. They don’t want anyone doing anything better than them. They don’t want to not be the smartest person in the room. This, as you know, can be detrimental to work culture as advancement is impossible unless they have buddies they are confident won’t try to usurp their power. The moment someone wants to own a new project or take on more responsibility, the manager is quick to keep them under their thumb for fear of them having someone who could potentially make them look weak.
Lynch seems like a leader. Someone who wants everyone to be smarter than him (right now in the football executive world that wouldn’t be too hard), and actively encouraging people to succeed. He put his money where his mouth is. He said he didn’t know what to do, but he knew how to get there and he certainly has put together a dream team staff. Time will tell if Lynch becomes a great football executive—but we at least know he’s got the right idea and the right mindset to lead that front office.
Onto your links!
John Lynch hires new 49ers director of Pro Personnel (Maiocco)
49ers' Garnett Ready to Take Big Step Forward in Year Two (Williams)
49ers eyeing veteran Kedric Golston for d-line depth (Barrows)
Wayne Walker, All-Pro linebacker turned broadcaster, dies at 80 (Pro Football Talk)
49ers add Carthon to front office (Branch)
49ers’ retooled play-action game a winning bet (Cohn)
Colin Kaepernick made headlines in his jersey. Now, it’s heading to famous museum (Barrows)
Kyle Shanahan: No QBs in NFL draft were Day 1 starters (Biderman)