THE HALL CALLS FOR LYNCH

Legendary safety adding to his football legacy as 49ers GM

Craig Massei

John Lynch was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Aug. 8, primarily for what he did as a player during his distinguished 15-year career as one of the most fearsome rock 'em-and sock’em safeties the NFL ever has seen.

But what Lynch has accomplished over the past four years in rebuilding the 49ers as the team’s general manager might have something to do with finally pushing Lynch over the edge and into the hallowed Hall where some of the greatest figures in sports history are enshrined for eternity.

After all, Lynch was a top-15 modern era finalist in Hall voting for seven consecutive years before he finally was tabbed for enshrinement in February along with four other modern candidates, including three slam-dunk first-year finalists, as part of the Hall’s eight-member Class of 2021.

This came just one year after Lynch was named 2019 NFL Executive of the Year for his part in turning the 49ers into NFC champions just three years after he and coach Kyle Shanahan inherited a 2-14 team and began dismantling the roster and building a new culture and foundation for the organization.

A coincidence? We think not after Lynch finally was enshrined in his ninth year of eligibility.

“What a humbling honor,” Lynch said during his poignant induction speech. “First, let me say that nothing about my Hall of Fame journey has been easy. I waited eight years as a finalist. What a privilege it is to be inducted into this brotherhood. As everyone up here will attest, it takes a lot of belief to get to this stage.”

It’s not difficult to believe that Lynch at last was standing on that stage. His fabulous career speaks for itself.

A nine-time Pro Bowler with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Denver Broncos, Lynch was named All-Pro four consecutive years from 19992002 while becoming a Lynchpin — in a manner of speaking — for one of the greatest defensive units in NFL history, a defense that led Tampa Bay to the franchise’s first Super Bowl title in 2002.

After missing out on the Pro Bowl with the Buccaneers in 2003 for just the second time in seven seasons, Lynch moved on to Denver, where he found rejuvenation in the twilight of his career, earning four consecutive Pro Bowl berths to end his career on his way to a place in the Broncos Ring of Fame.