Possible Friction Between John Lynch and 49ers is a Good Thing

Friction is a likely reality in the 49ers’ facility and should be considered a good thing.

Where did John Lynch go the past two months?

He went from active involvement with the local media and Twitter to complete and utter silence. This isn’t like him to disappear so suddenly. Perhaps it was a way to stick it to the 49ers because Kyle Shanahan got his contract extension first? 

That’s what my editor Grant Cohn has theorized, and it honestly wouldn’t be far fetched. A lot of these guys who are in positions of power, like a general manager, can become offended by little things like not getting extended first. Stuff like this is what brings up possible friction between Lynch and Shanahan. 

And even though the initial report of their “friction” was never cemented as truth last year, I’m willing to bet that the two have had a fair share of spats. 

A possible friction between Lynch and Shanahan is a good thing. 

Friction doesn’t always need to be perceived negatively. It happens all the time with every team across the league. When the coaches have their weekly meetings, there are a bunch of different ideas being thrown out there and argued over what the best plan will be against Sunday’s opponent. 

The same happens with the head coach and general manager when they conduct their meetings. No team is absolved from spats or friction. Unless of course the building is filled with “yes men,” which could be the case for some teams. Lynch and Shanahan are coworkers. 

Having a spat is common in the workplace because one person has one ideology that doesn’t align with another. That makes for the perfect cohesion of these two because they do not let any spat become detrimental to their overall goal of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy. 

So whether you believe it or not, the back and forth happens within the front-office and coaches. It just shows how passionate these guys are about winning, which is great because there are some teams out there that do not reciprocate that energy. 

The 49ers just do a phenomenal job of not letting get past the boiling point and to a measure where it becomes divisive. Otherwise, there would not have been extensions for both Lynch and Shanahan.