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TOWNSHIP, Ohio – John Lynch used his time on stage at the Pro Football Hall of Fame to share his belief that the lessons of football can be used to help bridge the differences in this country.
“If we are to achieve the goals we have set for ourselves, we all have to learn to play together and work together,” said Lynch, who is entering his fifth season as general manager for the 49ers. “Each of us comes from a different background, but when we come together, we come together as a team.
“Tonight I advocate that we take the lead in football and come together as a people, as a great nation. Let us find common ground through our common values. Let us celebrate and learn from our differences.”
Lynch, 49, was inducted into the Professional Football Hall of Fame Sunday night as part of the 2021 promotion of eight members.
Former Raiders coach Tom Flores, Peyton Manning, Calvin Johnson, Charles Woodson, Alan Faneca, Drew Pearson and former Pittsburgh scout Bill Nunn were also inducted at the ceremony inside the Tom Benson Hall of Fame.
Lynch’s son Jake and Herm Edwards, his defensive back coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, introduced Lynch in a video released before Lynch’s speech.
“It takes a lot of conviction to get to this point,” Lynch said. However, belief is not something that just happens. It has to be nurtured a million times: a note, a pat on the back, a tip. These are the things that promote belief in ourselves. Today hui, I will recognize those who did this for me.
“I wouldn’t be here today without someone, my wife and best friend, Linda Lynch.”
Lynch met his future wife in seventh grade in San Diego. He said his wife wrote him a note before each game to calm and focus him. They have four children: Jake, Lindsay, Lilly and Leah.
Lynch recognized many of his coaches who helped him get there, including 49ers legend and Hall of Fame member Bill Walsh. He said he wouldn’t have taken the stage without Walsh.
Walsh showed Lynch about five pieces of himself doing something similar to Ronnie Lott. Lynch bought what Walsh was selling and focused on football.
“He saw something in me when it hadn’t even materialized yet,” Lynch said on 49ers Talk.
Lynch spent his first two seasons at Stanford as a replacement behind quarterbacks Steve Smith and Jason Palumbis. He just wanted to get on the pitch and he convinced then-head coach Dennis Green to take him to safety.
Green left Stanford when he was hired as head coach of the Minnesota Vikings, and Bill Walsh came out of retirement to replace him.
Walsh convinced Lynch to continue with football despite being a prominent baseball prospect. He was a second-round pick as the Florida Marlins pitcher in 1992.
He told Lynch, who had barely played half the snaps in defense, that he could be an All-Pro artist.
“It didn’t end there,” Lynch said. “On draft day, because there were rumors that I was trying to take advantage of the Florida Marlins and didn’t really want to play football, Bill called and called all the teams.”
He spoke to Tampa Bay head coach Sam Wyche. The Buccaneers selected him in the third round of the 1993 draft.
Lynch was with the Denver Broncos in 2007 when Walsh passed away. He took a day off from training camp practice to attend the Memorial Church service on the Stanford campus.
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Lynch reflected on his time with Walsh as a head coach. Keena Turner, who is now vice president and senior advisor to the general manager, played under Walsh with the 49ers and was part of his coaching staff at Stanford.
“I said, ‘Keena, Bill is such a nice guy,’ and he said, ‘That’s not what the Niners called him,” Lynch said with a laugh.
“About halfway through the year when he realized we were good, we saw the toughest Bill Walsh. He just wanted perfection, and he had a great way to get them there. people.”
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