Shanahan, Lynch Disagreed On Joe Williams
- John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan were split on one of the 49ers’ eventual draft picks, and the coach won out. Lynch had Utah running back Joe Williams off his draft board, but Shanahan convinced the new GM to give the go-ahead for a fourth-round selection, Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Shanahan, who was tied to the 49ers midway through the GM hunt and thus received an opportunity for additional control, helped sway Lynch to trade a fifth-round pick to move up in the fourth round and select Williams. The Utes runner’s questionable off-the-field past had Lynch skeptical, but Shanahan saw some promise in the back who ran the Combine’s second-fastest 40 time at 4.41 seconds. With Carlos Hyde entering a contract year, Williams could be a key component of the 49ers’ future.
49ers Make Front Office Changes
The new-look 49ers front office will continue to undergo changes. The John Lynch-led operation parted ways with two executives, pro personnel director Mike Williams and assistant director Quentus Cumby, according to Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News (on Twitter).
San Francisco didn’t unveil the Lynch hiring until the last week of January, so the team opted to keep some staffers through the draft — similar to the Colts and Bills as they change regimes. But Williams and Cumby will be looking for work elsewhere now, as Lynch and Kyle Shanahan continue their reboot.
Williams and Cumby each rose to their current positions under since-fired GM Trent Baalke, although both began their initial 49ers tenures before Baalke rose to prominence in the front office. Each spent four years in their most recent roles with the team. A higher-profile mid-offseason departure occurred when assistant GM Tom Gamble and the team parted ways in late February.
Cumby spent more than a decade with the franchise, serving the first seven as the 49ers’ pro personnel scout. Williams was serving in his second stint with the 49ers. He worked with the team from 2000-08 and spent the final four years of that stay in Cumby’s aforementioned position as assistant pro personnel director before taking the Rams’ VP of player personnel job in 2009.
Aaron Lynch At Risk Of Getting Cut?
Could Aaron Lynch‘s tenure in San Francisco be coming to an end? According to Grant Cohn of the Santa Rosa Press Democrat (via Twitter), the 49ers linebacker is 20 pounds overweight and is at risk of getting cut.
The 24-year-old has spent his entire three-year career with the 49ers. After being selected out of South Florida in the fifth round of the 2014 draft, Lynch proceeded to play in all 16 games as a rookie. His sophomore campaign was arguably his best season, as the linebacker finished with 38 tackles and 6.5 sacks.
The linebacker was suspended for the first four games of the 2016 season after violating the NFL’s Policy and Program for Substances of Abuse. Lynch ended up finishing last season with career-lows in games (seven), tackles (12), and sacks (1.5). A nagging ankle injury continually kept him off the field following his suspension.
Lynch was expected to play defensive end in new defensive coordinator Robert Saleh‘s scheme. However, Cohn later said that the defender was the most likely to be cut among the Trent Baalke holdovers (right ahead of Vance McDonald). If the 49ers do ultimately cut Lynch, they’ll probably need some reinforcement at defensive end. Behind starters Arik Armstead and Solomon Thomas, the team is only rostering defensive ends Lynch and Ronald Blair.
Shanahan: Reuben Foster Could Miss 2017
There was significant concern about linebacker Reuben Foster‘s right shoulder entering the draft, which surely played a part in the ex-Alabama star’s first-round fall. Once regarded as a likely top 10 pick, Foster ended up going 31st overall to the 49ers, who are so bullish on the All-America defender that they would have been willing to select him at No. 3 had former Stanford D-lineman Solomon Thomas not been on the board. Instead, after landing Thomas with their top pick, the Niners were able to secure Foster by trading up three spots for him in a deal with the NFC West rival Seahawks.
The 49ers’ doctors “felt good” about Foster’s shoulder after examining it, head coach Kyle Shanahan told KNBR in San Francisco (via Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle), but the club nonetheless realizes the 23-year-old isn’t a lock to play in 2017.
“The worst-case scenario is the shoulder doesn’t heal correctly and you’ve got to do it again,” Shanahan said of a potential second surgery for Foster. “When you have to do it again, you have to get another surgery and it would be tough to play this year, and you end up having him the next year.”
Foster’s shoulder “could give out on any hit,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported earlier this week, though Shanahan won’t regard the selection as a mistake if it does. Shanahan doesn’t believe Foster’s shoulder is a “long-term” concern, adding: “So the worst-case scenario, he wouldn’t end up being able to play for us right away. But I still don’t think that would have changed how I personally felt about taking a guy with the 31st pick with the caliber of player that we took.”
By moving back into the first round for Foster, the 49ers gave themselves a chance to keep him in the fold on his first contract for five years, as opposed to four had he gone in the second round. As such, a redshirt season wouldn’t be catastrophic from a team control standpoint (though it certainly wouldn’t be ideal). And if Foster does sit out 2017 but go on to reach his potential from 2018-21, the 49ers probably won’t regret dealing the 34th and 111th choices to trade up for him.
49ers Sign Five Draft Picks, 16 UDFAs
The 49ers are making quick work of their 2017 draft class, as the club announced today that they’ve signed defensive back Adrian Colbert, defensive lineman D.J. Jones, tight end George Kittle, defensive lineman Pita Taumoepenu, and wide receiver Trent Taylor to rookie contracts. San Francisco also confirmed the previously-reported signing of fourth-round running back Joe Williams.
Additionally, the 49ers have announced the signing of 16 undrafted college free agents:
- Victor Bolden, WR (Oregon State)
- Kendrick Bourne, WR (Eastern Washington)
- Matt Breida, RB (Georgia Southern) ($5K bonus, $25K guaranteed base salary, per Tom Pelissero of USA Today)
- John Flynn, OL (Montana State)
- Zach Franklin, CB (Washburn)
- Malik Golden, S (Penn State) ($3K bonus, $12K guaranteed base salary)
- Evan Goodman, OL (Arizona State)
- Cole Hikutini, TE (Louisville) ($10K bonus, $10K guaranteed base salary)
- Lorenzo Jerome, DB (Saint Francis)
- Erik Magnuson, OL (Michigan)
- Tyler McCloskey, FB (Houston)
- Nick Mullens, QB (Southern Mississippi)
- Donavin Newsom, LB (Missouri)
- Noble Nwachukwu, DL (West Virginia)
- Bret Treadway, OL (Lamar)
- Darrell Williams Jr., OL (Western Kentucky)
49ers Release RB Mike Davis
The 49ers have released running back Mike Davis, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Davis drew trade interest during the draft, so Rapoport expects him to find a market for his services now that he is available. 
[RELATED: 49ers Would’ve Drafted Reuben Foster No. 3]
Davis was a fourth-round pick in 2015 but he hasn’t done a whole lot in his two NFL seasons. Between 2015 and 2016, he has averaged just 2.0 yards per carry on 54 attempts. The Niners added running back Joe Williams in the fourth round of this year’s draft and they have five other veterans RBs under contract, so there wasn’t much room for Davis. The Niners are also expected to add Georgia Southern running back Matt Breida as an undrafted free agent.
Davis missed the second half of the 2016 season with a broken hand. He was slated to return from IR later in the season, but he never made it back on to the field.
49ers Would’ve Drafted Reuben Foster No. 3
The 49ers were willing to select Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster with the third overall pick if edge rushers Myles Garrett and Solomon Thomas were already off the board, and likely would have done so had the Bears not traded a bevy of draft choices to move up to No. 2, as Peter King of TheMMQB.com reports in a typically excellent piece from inside the San Francisco draft room.
Much of the 49ers front office — with the exception of chief strategy office Paraag Marathe — believed Chicago wanted to trade up for Thomas, and were surprised when the Bears ultimately selected North Carolina quarterback Mitch Trubisky. San Francisco was comfortable with Foster at No. 3 despite an injured shoulder and off-field issues that included a diluted sample at the scouting combine, but still hoped to move back as far as No. 8 before drafting him. Instead, the Niners took 150 cents on the dollar (according to Chase Stuart of Football Perspective) in order to move down one spot.
After selecting Thomas third overall, the 49ers figured Foster would be gone by the middle of the first round, as general manager John Lynch pegged Cincinnati as a likely destination while head coach Kyle Shanahan didn’t think Foster would get past Baltimore at No. 16. But as Foster continued to tumble throughout the first round, San Francisco began to discuss a trade with the division rival Seahawks. Ultimately, the 49ers dealt No. 34 and No. 111 for Seattle’s No. 31, and used that newly-acquired pick to add Foster, the third overall player on their board.
While getting Foster at the end of the first round can certainly be considered a coup, the Alabama ‘backer’s injury issues might not be in the rearview mirror. A source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com that Foster’s shoulder surgery “didn’t take,” while some clubs are reportedly worried Foster’s rookie campaign could be a lost cause due to health questions. While the 49ers found Foster’s medicals to be adequate, one source tells Schefter that Foster’s shoulder “could give out on any hit.” Indeed, some NFL teams “medically rejected” Foster due to concerns about his shoulder, tweets Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports.
Additionally, it’s not a great look for Lynch and the 49ers staff that they were willing to use the third overall pick on a player who ultimately fell to the end of Round 1. Clearly, picking Foster at No. 3 would have been a reach based on the end results of the draft, and it’s fair to question whether San Francisco’s personnel department had thoroughly evaluated Foster (and his potential for being drafted in the top half of the first round).
49ers Sign Joe Williams
- The 49ers are the first team to sign a 2017 draft pick, as they’ve agreed to terms with fourth-round running back Joe Williams, according to Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter link). Williams, a Utah product, will compete for playing time behind Carlos Hyde during his rookie season. He should be in line for a four-year deal worth roughly $3.029MM and a signing bonus of about $329K.
- The Jets have claimed offensive lineman Alex Balducci off waivers from San Francisco, per the league’s transaction wire. Balducci, 23, played defensive line at Oregon, but shifted to offense under his collegiate head coach Chip Kelly with the 49ers. In 2016, Balducci appeared in two games, but played on only six total snaps (three on offense, three on special teams).
Rams Claim DT Mike Purcell Off Waivers
The Rams claimed Mike Purcell off waivers from the 49ers, according to the league transactions wire. The nose tackle was one of 13 players released by the team on Tuesday.
Purcell, 26, appeared in 15 games for the Niners last season, including five starts. He finished out the season with 26 tackles and one forced fumble. The Wyoming product was on the field for 280 snaps in total with good portion of his playing time coming on special teams.
Purcell will now look to make the Rams’ roster as a reserve defensive tackle along with Dominique Easley, free agent pickup Tyrunn Walker, Louis Trinca-Pasat, and sixth-round pick Tanzel Smart.
49ers Cut 13 Players
The 49ers have released 13 players, including linebacker Jayson DiManche and wide receiver Eric Rogers. Here’s the full list:
- OL Alex Balducci
- S Marcus Ball
- LB Carl Bradford
- LB Jayson DiManche
- TE Je’Ron Hamm
- WR Chris Harper
- LB Wynton McManis
- P Brock Miller
- DL Zach Moore
- NT Mike Purcell
- WR Eric Rogers
- CB JaCorey Shepherd
- LB Shayne Skov
DiManche was just signed on April 7th, so his stint in San Francisco lasted less than one month. We haven’t seen DiManche in live action since 2015 when he appeared in one game for the Browns. Prior to that, he spent two seasons with the Bengals.
Rogers, a former CFL standout, was a practice field favorite of Chip Kelly last offseason until an unfortunate injury shut him down for the season. This week, the 49ers signed undrafted Baylor wide receiver K.D. Cannon and that only further crowded the wide receiver position in SF. With Rogers and Harper out of the picture, the team still has nine receivers under contract.