The 49ers won’t get to watch their general manager get inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in August. John Lynch was not among the players announced for the 2019 Hall of Fame class. Former 49ers wide receiver Isaac Bruce is also not among the players going to Canton.
The 2019 Hall of Fame was announced Saturday. It includes Champ Bailey, Ty Law, Tony Gonzalez, Ed Reed, Kevin Mawae, Gil Brandt, Pat Bowlen and Johnny Robinson.
Lynch was on his sixth ballot after retiring in 2007. He spent 15 seasons as one of the most feared safeties in the league – 11 with Tampa Bay and four with Denver. The Buccaneers made a Lynch a third-round pick in 1993.
He racked up 1,054 tackles, 26 interceptions, 36 pass breakups, nine Pro Bowl trips, two All-Pro nods and a Super Bowl in 2002 with the Bucs. It’s hard to imagine Lynch misses too many more shots at the Hall of Fame. This was his sixth time as a finalist.
Bruce only spent the final two years of his 16-year career in San Francisco. He had a tremendous career that saw him haul in 1,024 passes for 15,208 yards and 91 touchdowns. Bruce finished fifth all-time in receiving yards, 13th in receptions and 12th in receiving touchdowns.
He was also four-time Pro Bowler and a Super Bowl champion with the Rams in 1999. The ‘Greatest Show on Turf’ Rams probably never materialize the way they did without Bruce on the perimeter. Between 1999 and 2001 he averaged 76 catches for 1,247 yards and nine touchdowns per season.
While 2019 was disappointing for both players, it looks like Canton will be calling both of them sooner rather than later.
