SANTA CLARA — After three consecutive trips to the NFC Championship Game and a heartbreaking overtime loss in Super Bowl LVIII, there was only one thing that could make the 49ers’ 2024 NFL season a success.
It was a Super Bowl title or bust.
Of course, it ended up being a bust.
The 49ers finished in last place in the NFC West with a 6-11 record.
This is a new season, and the 49ers will have a new look with a significant degree of roster turnover. Approximately a dozen starters and contributors are gone, including such mainstays as Deebo Samuel, Dre Greenlaw and Charvarius Ward.
Still, there is only one way to define true satisfaction in the NFL, 49ers general manager John Lynch said on the latest “49ers Talk.”
“Well, what I know is at the end of each season there’s one happy team,” Lynch said. “So I think, ultimately, that’s what will define it. Are we that team, the last team standing?”
The 49ers fielded the oldest team in the NFL last season. Lynch set out in the offseason to get younger at key spots throughout the roster, most notably along the defensive line. San Francisco released veterans Leonard Floyd, Javon Hargrave and Maliek Collins and replaced them with draft picks Mykel Williams, Alfred Collins and C.J. West.
“We’ll be a younger team,” Lynch said. “It’s a young man’s game. But you’re probably going to take some lumps and it’s going to take some time.
“You’re going to have to make some mistakes. That’s no excuse. It’s just a reality. I think we will have some young players playing, provided they earn those opportunities.”
The 49ers will lean heavily on defensive coordinator Robert Saleh and his defensive staff to get those young players to a level to contribute from the beginning of the regular season. San Francisco’s top five draft picks included those three defensive linemen, as well as linebacker Nick Martin and nickel back Upton Stout.
But there still is the nucleus of the team — high-priced players at nearly every position group — that includes quarterback Brock Purdy, running back Christian McCaffrey, tight end George Kittle, left tackle Trent Williams, defensive end Nick Bosa, linebacker Fred Warner and cornerback Deommodore Lenoir.
Lynch said he saw plenty of encouraging signs from veterans and youngsters alike during the 49ers’ recently completed offseason program.
“To complement that with some young players with the last couple of draft classes, it’s an exciting mix,” Lynch said. “And you know, it’s all got to come together. But I like where we’re at.”
Download and follow the 49ers Talk Podcast
Read the full article here