The 49ers' run of success has earned new contracts for their leadership duo.
General manager John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan have received multi-year contract extensions, the team announced Friday. Lynch was previously signed through 2024, while Shanahan was inked through 2025.
A Pro Football Hall of Fame safety, Lynch made the jump from the broadcast booth to the front office in 2017, taking over as 49ers GM in a move that was considered to be unorthodox at the time. He made the right hire at coach, bringing Shanahan over from the reigning NFC champion Atlanta Falcons in February of 2017.
Since then, the two have worked wonders in San Francisco, finding near-perennial success in the NFC West and conference as a whole, despite a number of changes at quarterback. They swung a deal for Jimmy Garoppolo in 2017 and quickly surrounded him with a talented team, leading to an NFC title in 2019 and appearance in Super Bowl LIV.
Since then, the duo has weathered unusual instability under center, cycling through a number of options before trading up in the 2021 draft to select North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance. That experiment never got off the ground, though, due to Garoppolo's presence and a season-ending injury to Lance in 2022. They ultimately traded Lance to Dallas in August after finding a diamond in 2022 Mr. Irrelevant and current face the future, Brock Purdy.
Despite these changes, Lynch and Shanahan have found consistent success, posting a 52-46 record between 2017 and 2022, and starting 2023 with three straight wins. They've reached the conference championship three times in six seasons and posted three seasons of 10-plus wins in that span. Their greatest downfall has been quarterback, but with Purdy now leading the way, the future remains bright for a franchise that undoubtedly appreciates the efforts of its regime.
