San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch made an appearance on 95.7 The Game Tuesday evening, chatting with Damon Bruce for 19 minutes (audio). Lynch hit on a lot of the usual topics, including Jimmy Garoppolo, the Alfred Morris signing, and of course the new helmet rule and the consternation surrounding it.
Late in the interview Lynch and Bruce talked about Hard Knocks. Lynch was happy not to be on it, and even said one more reason to hope for a run to the playoffs this year is that it means you don’t have to be on the show. So we know where he stands on that.
He was also asked about Jerick McKinnon, who will miss the rest of training camp as he recovers from a calf strain. By all accounts, McKinnon should be good to go for Week 1 (I hope so given that I just drafted him in a fantasy league!), but naturally Lynch would have preferred seeing McKinnon get into a rhythm with some preseason action and more practice reps.
That being said, Lynch jokingly said McKinnon will have fresh legs when Week 1 of the regular season arrives. He laughed a little, but there is something to be said for that. A player is not completely worn down after five weeks of training camp and the preseason, but plenty of players are likely feeling it to some degree. I’d much prefer McKinnon have gotten a normal training camp and preseason workload, but what are you going to do? I’ll take optimism where I can get it!
I’ve time-stamped it below, and you can listen to the audio here.
00:33 - The team he inherited, and the quick turnaround
02:30 - Jimmy Garoppolo fitting the mold
04:15 - Jerick McKinnon being ready for Week 1
05:47 - Alfred Morris signing
07:10 - The helmet rule
09:00 - A hit from Lynch’s career that would be illegal now
09:49 - Sherman’s comments toward the helmet rule
11:13 - The stand out rookie
15:07 - The lessons he hopes Reuben Foster learned and also local media learned
18:05 - On not having to be on Hard Knocks