The San Francisco 49ers have moved past their offseason drama. With new contracts finalized for wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk and tackle Trent Williams, the focus is now fully on Monday night's season opener against the New York Jets.
On Friday morning, general manager John Lynch joined Bay Area radio station KNBR and assured listeners that despite the challenges of the past few months, there's no lingering animosity between him and the two star players.
"I'm not gonna lie; I made it a little bit more difficult than I needed to at the end," Aiyuk told reporters with a smile this week.
That's all part of the contract negotiation process. Now that the deals are done, everyone is ready to move forward and put this past offseason behind them. That's easy for Lynch, thanks to his upbringing.
"I think it's the way I was raised by John (Sr.) and Cathy [Lynch]," the general manager explained. "It's just 'forgive and forget.' I think that goes both ways. These things get intense. People are passionate about it, about their positions. We've got to run a team. But one thing I've learned is you go from being in intense negotiations to hugging them and understanding that a big part of their life's dream just came true. That their family's set up. Their family's family is set up, and that's a great thing.
"And our team is set up, too. So it's not like it just fulfills their dreams. It helps keep stud players here. I think you have to acknowledge the York family, who continues to allow us to treat our players the way we do and reward our players. And we've rewarded a lot of them, and these guys are two examples."
Aiyuk has been the 49ers' leading receiver for the past two seasons, with a career-high 1,342 receiving yards last season. Meanwhile, at 36, Williams remains one of the league's top offensive linemen and is a surefire first-ballot Hall of Famer.
"I can tell you, when you step on that field, and all of a sudden you have Trent Williams and Brandon Aiyuk and Christian's (McCaffrey) back at practice, it feels a little different, and it feels great, and it's been a good vibe here," Lynch concluded.
You can listen to the entire conversation with Lynch below.
