One of the Seattle Seahawks' top rivals are the hated San Francisco 49ers. There is no love lost between these two teams, as they represent one of the best (and possibly last true) rivalries in the NFL. Under the leadership of head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch, the Niners have been a nearly-routine force to be reckoned with. But it's becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the fact their success is largely the result of Shanahan's efforts, and quite frankly in spite of what Lynch has done.
During the 2026 NFL draft weekend, 49ers beat reporter Grant Cohn confronted Lynch in a press conference asking why San Francisco seemingly always "reaches" for players. Lynch quickly brushed the comment off, but the shots Cohn fired were heard 'round the country. NFL analyst Warren Sharp took the baton passed to him by Cohn and did a deep dive on San Francisco's past drafts and elaborated on how the 49ers are actually the worst drafting team in the league. Several of their they've made in recent years have been reaches, and nearly every reach has busted outright. In fact, since 2017, John Lynch has only drafted three Pro Bowlers: Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, and Deebo Samuel (who is no longer on the team).
Lynch's shortcomings when it comes to the draft are starting to get noticed beyond that of local beat reporters and independent analysts. On Monday's episode of The Herd, host Colin Cowherd set his sights squarely on Lynch, and his comments can be seen in the tweet below.
"I don't get how John Lynch drafts. I know John. I covered John. I don't get their drafts... No team in the league has reached on more players over the last 4-5 years."Once again, @colincowherd does not understand the 49ers draft strategy pic.twitter.com/bZG2y1Na1A
John Lynch has been the general manager of the 49ers since the 2017 season. He is inextricably tied at the hip to his head coach, Kyle Shanahan, as they joined the organization in the same year. During this time, San Francisco has amassed an overall record of 91-72, including three NFC West titles and two trips to the Super Bowl... both of which were embarrassing losses. Lynch has managed to avoid criticism until now due to the team's success, but those winning ways are getting harder to come by.
Every year, it seems the 49ers are on the brink of collapse due to their injury situation. Sometimes they do crater, and sometimes they manage to overcome... like last season, when they finished 12-5 and made it to the Divisional Round. Of course, their season came to a screeching halt when they were obliterated 41-6 by the Seahawks, a team that would go on to win the Super Bowl in their own building. The talent gap they once enjoyed over teams like Seattle and Los Angeles has totally flipped against them, and it's only getting wider as San Francisco's supposed reinforcements aren't doing much to help contribute or mitigate the loss of their injury-prone star players as they continue to age.
Naturally, the 12th Man loves reading stories like this, as it helps ease their worry from one of their biggest rivals. John Schneider and Mike Macdonald continuously prove they excel at the draft and managing Seattle's roster. At this point, the 12's are hoping Lynch's seat doesn't get too hot, as his apparent ineptitude will only benefit the Seahawks in the long run.
This article originally appeared on Seahawks Wire: FOX Sports host Colin Cowherd critiques 49ers 2026 NFL draft