The San Francisco 49ers were genuinely concerned that former Georgia defensive end Mykel Williams might not be available when they made their first-round selection at No. 11 in the 2025 NFL Draft. There was speculation inside the draft room that the New Orleans Saints were seriously interested, so much so that the 49ers even considered trading up to leapfrog them. The trade never materialized, and fortunately for San Francisco, the Saints went in another direction.

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Had the Saints selected Williams at No. 10, general manager John Lynch says the 49ers likely would have pivoted to the offensive side of the ball.


Lynch shared insight into the team's strategy during an appearance on the Chris Simms Unbuttoned podcast.

"I don't like talking about guys that we didn't take, but I will tell you that, yes, we did go five consecutive defensive players," Lynch said. "But if Mykel wasn't there, it likely would have been an offensive player."

Heading into the draft, the 49ers' two biggest needs were widely considered to be the offensive and defensive lines. Many mock drafts projected them to select an offensive tackle at No. 11. Lynch didn't confirm that an offensive lineman was the backup plan, but, notably, San Francisco didn't use any of its 11 draft picks on a tackle, nor did the team sign one as an undrafted free agent.

Lynch notes that while the 49ers had glaring needs, they might have simply gone with the best player available.

"So, at that point, you're picking that high, I do think you have to—man, if this stacks up perfect—but you can't get too far away from who you deem the best player at that point," he explained.


He acknowledged that while some teams focus more strictly on talent than need, the 49ers strive for a balance between the two. This year, though, the team's needs might have played a larger role in shaping their decisions.

"We hadn't had a lot of needs in a long time, but this year, we had a lot of open spots, and so we had to fill those," Lynch said. "And we were fortunate that it aligned in such a way that we could go get a bunch of defense, and then, start adding some guys that we thought could help us both now and into the future on the offensive side of the ball, right down to the last pick, with a returner who we felt is really, really dynamic, that can help us on special teams, in Junior Bergen."

What led to more needs this offseason?

Explaining the roster overhaul


The 49ers entered the offseason with a clear plan—retool the roster, cut long-term spending, and prepare for what's expected to be a massive contract extension for quarterback Brock Purdy.

Lynch emphasized that the changes were not mandated by ownership. Instead, it was the logical next step after years of heavy investment in a veteran roster and repeated pushes for a Super Bowl.


"Rather than have a multi-year reset, we felt like we had an opportunity," Lynch said. "I won't say a need, but a want to, because you look back and you say, 'Okay, we've got an expensive roster, we have an aging roster.' I think we were the oldest team in football at the end of last season.

"Now is the time to go do a retool. Not a reset, not a tear-up, because we still have that core of Hall of Fame players that are here."

Lynch continued, "But we needed to infuse some youth into our roster, and we thought it was a good opportunity. Those are hard decisions to make."

That shift required the 49ers to take a different approach to free agency. Rather than aggressively re-signing or chasing high-profile talent, the team watched several key players walk away in pursuit of better offers elsewhere. And San Francisco was relatively quiet when adding new players to its roster.

Fortunately, San Francisco entered the draft with 11 picks, bolstered by compensatory selections, giving the team plenty of ammunition to infuse youth into the roster.


"So it just kind of fell into place," Lynch concluded. "... It's not easy to see your players walk away, and we're not wired that way. We're wired to add, to grow. It was hard to take a step back."

You can listen to Lynch's entire interview below.



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