The San Francisco 49ers are preparing for life without Jed York.
The team’s summer has been rampant with drama, including the arrest of their principal owner.
York’s actions have led to a league review under the NFL’s personal conduct policy, which has propelled the 49ers to prepare for a possible extended absence.
The 46-year-old faces a potential suspension as a result of his recent arrest in Ohio last month where he responded to an ad on a known prostitution website and tried to pay a woman $140 for sex.
“Let’s have conversations beforehand so that we know exactly where his wishes are,” general manager John Lynch said on a recent appearance on “The TK Show.”
“And you can’t do that for everything because issues come up, like [the] trade deadline. You don’t know until you know, and there’s so many factors that go into that. But we’ll be prepared for everything because we’ve put in the work, we’ve put in the communication beforehand.”
Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan have already begun setting up frequent meetings with York, who quietly moved to Ohio after filing for divorce from his wife, Danielle.
York had not attended training camp this summer, so his absence isn’t too different from how the 49ers have operated ahead of the upcoming season.
“If he’s not going to be here, Jed, we’ve got to talk on a regular basis,” Lynch said. “He knows that, we know that, we’ve done that. Now, to the regularity that we normally do, because conversations kind of come up organically, no, but it’s probably led to a lot more scheduled meetings where, in the past, it was more organic.
“Yesterday morning, [head coach] Kyle [Shanahan] and I were on a Zoom with Jed and had a great discussion about a variety of things. And so, that communication is critical, I think, to keep everybody on the same page. And Jed, he’s been a great sounding board over the years. He trusts us.”
49ers personnel have been adamant that the York scandal hasn’t affected the team in a negative way, but the perception of the franchise has certainly been tainted this summer.
