John Lynch stumbled over his words in his post-season press conference when asked whether rumors of his possible return to the television broadcast booth were true. It turns out there were at least talks between the 49ers general manager and NFL broadcast partner Amazon per the New York Post’s Andrew Marchand.
Lynch in his press conference said he remained committed to the 49ers organization, which matches up with Marchand’s report that the GM wanted to stay in the front office despite a potentially sizable pay raise.
“Amazon held talks with current 49ers GM and ex-TV analyst John Lynch, according to sources, but it did not lead to a deal,” Marchand reported in his column.
He elaborated on Twitter: “Amazon reached out to Lynch, according to sources. There was a dinner. Lynch probably could have tripled his salary, which is reportedly around $5M as the GM. Lynch, I’m told, declined and wanted to remain in the front office.”
Lynch did hint in his press conference on February 1 after the 49ers’ loss to the Rams in the NFC championship game that options for him to return to the broadcast booth were on the table.
“From time to time, opportunities are presented and I can tell you and tell everyone that that my commitment right now is to this organization,” he said. “We’re just coming off a season, but my commitment is to the 49ers, to the York family to Kyle and standing up in front of that team yesterday and just getting an opportunity to reflect on what we have. I do think we have something special and we’re here to win championships. And we fell short of that, but I think both things be true that that’s our standard, but also the amount of pride and feel like it’s a real blessing to be a part of this organization. So my commitment is right here and that’s where I’ll be.”
Lynch joined the 49ers as their general manager in 2017 when they hired head coach Kyle Shanahan. It was his first foray into front office work after nine years as a color commentator on Fox NFL broadcasts. He eventually worked his way up to the No. 2 team alongside Kevin Burkhardt.
There’s always a chance Lynch does wind up leaving, especially with Amazon now factoring into NFL broadcasts along with ESPN, Fox and CBS. However, that doesn’t appear to be happening this year with Lynch still vying for a Super Bowl ring as a general manager.
