Hope everyone had a good feast to those who celebrate the holiday, where you eat numerous comfort foods. The San Francisco 49ers are going into a bye this weekend, so we get to sit back and watch the chaos.
The NFC is wide open. I agree with this. While the 49ers can win a playoff game or two, I still have reservations about them winning it all. Why? That defensive line is still a work in progress. I don’t necessarily blame the secondary when there are issues. Quarterbacks are getting over three seconds to throw the ball at times, and any secondary is going to get exposed at that point. I think that very issue may be the 49ers’ downfall.
The thing I’m looking at is how se the 49ers are for the future. They held onto their draft picks, they will be middle of the road in salary cap, and Mac Jones may bring some decent trade value, should they decide to trade him.
All I’m saying is there’s parity in the NFL this year, but the 49ers are positioned to become a juggernaut again sooner rather than later.
Ok, onto your questions. As you know, I patrol the feed and make a post there when I’m going to do a Golden Fool. You want to see your question answered by someone completely unqualified? Then you need to ask a question there, and I’ll (try to) answer it.
I think John Lynch is one of the best GMs in the NFL? Thoughts?
—billthebiker
I agree. Has he made mistakes? Absolutely. Has he also made good draft picks? Absolutely as well. Sure, the first round is often a bummer, but Lynch has been right more often than wrong.
Not just the draft either. It wasn’t just Kyle Shanahan; John Lynch pushed for the three first-round picks to get Trey Lance. Now the pick itself didn’t work out, but the logic was sound. Lynch publicly said he and Shanahan felt the 49ers were good enough to make a deep run in the playoffs the next two or three years. Sitting at 12 was the best they’d be able to sit in for the next few years. They wanted to make a change at quarterback and thought this was the best time to do it.
Now, that didn’t work out as we wanted, but he was right. The 49ers were set for the next couple of years, if they were going to make that trade for Trey Lance, 2021 was the year to do it. It didn’t work out, but just having that foresight can’t be understated. Contract awareness has also been great for Lynch, as his team has made the tough decisions (well, except for Brandon Aiyuk) rather than holding on to players and going into cap hell. Those are just two examples.
I also wrote for this site during Trent Baalke’s days, so I know what the other end of the spectrum looks like. Lynch is underrated as a GM.
When can we expect the Juaun Jennings mic’ed up game?
—CanWeCloneJoe
Oh man, please give me that. Please give us the authentic sounds of the game. But I can almost guarantee a Jauan Jennings mic’ed up game is NOT going to happen.
Due to injuries, we’ve learned a lot about players we typically would not see much of if the starters were playing — for example, Keion White and Clelin Ferrell.
But there are other considerations with respect to who to sign as key depth pieces for 2026. For example, Skyy Moore, Jauan Jennings, Eddy Piniero and Brian Robinson.
With the full understanding there are still four regular season games and at least one postseason game likely … and some players will likely command larger deals (like JJ) … based on what we know today, in what order would you prioritize those who will be free agents next year?
—Spartan83
I think this will be worth its own post next week, so stay tuned. Looking at the free agent list on OverTheCap, my priority would be Skyy Moore. The 49ers have developed an excellent kick returner, and I don’t want to go back to the days when they didn’t have such a weapon. That said, Moore would like to be in that role and serve as a backup wide receiver, since they have Jacob Cowing and Jordan Watkins waiting for playing time. So there’s some competition.
After Moore, I’d see how the 49ers could hold onto Jennings and possibly Bourne as well. I’d like to see the draft address offensive and defensive lines, in that order. I’d rather not have a wide receiver as a priority again. Beyond that, I think the edges in Clelin Ferrell should be held onto.
We’ll go deeper into this in a more dedicated post.
What difference would there be in Mac played QB instead of Brock?
—FartinGold
If Mac Jones is playing QB, he has a stronger arm (which I see as overrated), knowledge of an NFL offense, and efficient passing.
When Brock Purdy plays, you get better anticipation, data processing, calm under pressure, and mobility. The things Jones is better at, like arm strength, are negligible. When Mac Jones was on the field, there were more plays where I could confidently say “Purdy wouldn’t have that issue” than the other way around.
Pearsall’s production has been nonexistent since returning. Is that more of a Purdy issue? Or Pearsall issue? Ricky was on fire before the injury.
—ScubaChicken
I’ll give this a shot—as you know, I’m not a film breakdown guy. That said, Pearsall is being gameplanned for as priority numero uno. Then it’s Jennings/Bourne. I do think the timing has been off slightly with Purdy, but I also think the Cleveland Browns felt Pearsall would go nuts and planned accordingly. While the Browns have issues, their defense in that weather is no joke.
The 49ers get the Tennessee Titans, who don’t have a defense or elements on the level of Cleveland. I expect Pearsall to have a breakout game.