49ers Mailbag: How Jed York's Scandal Will Impact the Team this Year

The 49ers have one final day off before returning to practice on Monday with a 53-man roster. Let's answer some questions.

Brian Nemhauser: "What are the top 5 most embarrassing things that have happened to the 49ers in the last 5 years, and how many have happened in the last 6 months?"

In no particular order, the Jed York human-trafficking scandal, the Kyle Shanahan car accident, the Brandon Aiyuk social-media tirade against the team, the Seahawks winning the Super Bowl at Levi's Stadium and the 49ers not knowing the overtime rules in the Super Bowl. Four of those things happened in 2026.

Ashley Aireonna: "Does this situation with Jed ensure Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch will have job security no matter this season's outcome?"

Not necessarily. If the 49ers have a losing season this year, that would be Kyle Shanahan's fifth losing season in 10 years and his second losing season in the past three. Clearly, injuries would be a major issue once again, but something would have to change. Lynch could get promoted and a new general manager could get hired who has complete control over personnel, the 53-man roster and the salary cap, considering Paraag Marathe is now gone. And it's unclear if Shanahan would want to work with a strong general manager. Right now, he has final say over the 53-man roster, and his position coaches make most of the draft picks.

Alim Kamat: "With the 49ers having a strong locker room culture, how does that impact their ability to not let Jed York's off-the-field indiscretions affect them?"

York is not an asset to the football team. If anything, he's a detriment when he puts himself in the spotlight, tries to take credit for other people's success and makes the 49ers' quest for a Super Bowl victory about himself and his legacy within his family. He can't be Eddie DeBartolo, because Eddie was 5-0 in Super Bowls, while Jed is 0-3. The 49ers might be better off with a CEO who represents a fresh start.

Dude Dave: "Nick Bosa’s contract restructure forces a huge dead cap hit if he’s traded. How do the Niners navigate the back half of this deal without crippling their ability to re-sign other stars?"

I think they'd rather take the $49 million dead cap hit than pay him $33 million in cash if he's not elite anymore. The 49ers might have to release him with a post-June-1 designation next year if he has another injury-riddled season..

Spider Rico: "If the Niners GM was Les Snead, would he trade a Day 1 or Day 2 draft pick to address edge rusher with Sweat, Crosby or Thibodeaux?"

If Snead were the 49ers' GM, I'm guessing he would have found a way to trade for Myles Garrett this offseason, which is what he did for the Rams. Failing that, I'm guessing he would have moved heaven and earth to trade for Crosby. And I'm guessing he would have traded the last two first-round picks for veterans instead of drafting Mykel Williams and Ricky Pearsall.

Simon Scurlock: "Will the 49ers defense finish with more or less than 30 sacks?"

Fewer. I don't expect Bosa to play like he did four years ago.

Mickey Wrangle: "Will the 49ers admit another failed draft in 2025 and not compound the error by keeping West and Collins? The UDFAs are clearly better."

No. Lynch's draft resume isn't good enough for him to cut bait with two high draft picks from last year. He'll hold on and pray that they turn their careers around.

Frank Jiminez: "How valuable is Mac Jones in your opinion? What would be a trade that would make sense?"

He has virtually no trade value right now because the season is just a few days away and teams have their starting quarterbacks. When he could become valuable is during the season after a starting quarterback goes down. But still, instead of trading the 49ers a mid-round pick for Jones, a team simply could sign Jimmy Garoppolo and not give up a draft pick. Jones will draw interest next year when he's a free agent.

Pierce Baker: "What is the 49ers’ reasoning for their confidence in their training staff despite horrific results? Both old and young players are getting hurt. Ricky Pearsall was durable in college, too."

Because the training staff does exactly what the coaching staff tells it to do. If the coaching staff wants to rush a player back onto the field after an injury, the training staff won't stand in the way. A different training staff would be in the same predicament.

Rakzzyy: "If they are healthy by Week 13, I mean fully healthy and in a playoff spot, are they going to make that run? They’ve proven to beat the top teams when healthy. I know “healthy” is a loose term around here, but if they were to be."

Absolutely. The 49ers are one of the best teams in the league on paper, and they have lots of playoff experience. And they even match up well against the Rams. I'm just not confident they have what it takes to beat the Seahawks without Nick Bosa. He's their pass rush, and if you can't put pressure on Sam Darnold, you can't beat Seattle.

A. WAL: "Is it a way that Brandon Aiyuk and the Niners can bury the hatchet and make it work? Because as of right now, the Niners WR core is mid."

Doesn't seem like it. Also, Aiyuk's actions make you wonder how emotionally and mentally stable he is right now. I doubt he'll play football this year. Maybe he'll make a comeback in 2027, but that's not given.

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