General managers John Elway and John Lynch

share a bond going back three decades San Francisco 49ers T-Shirt , one built on respect, rivalry and reverence."He was the poster I had on my wall," said Lynch, who's 11 years younger than Elway, 58. "He was the idol I had growing up."The Broncos (6-6) play the 49ers (2-10) Sunday in the latest chapter of the friendly feud between the two superstars-turned-GMs whose paths have crisscrossed throughout their careers, both on the football field and the front office.Both were tutored by celebrated California high school football coach Jack Neumeier and both were Stanford quarterbacks before starring in Denver, albeit a decade apart and at different positions.Lynch prepared for his move into the front office by serving a sort of apprenticeship under Elway, attending the 2013 NFL combine with him and sitting in with the Broncos' GM during the draft.Yet, it was 20 years earlier when Elway first lent Lynch a helping hand, as both men recalled during one of Lynch's scholarship lunches a couple of years ago."I knew that Johnny was nervous, this being his first preseason game San Francisco 49ers Hats ," Elway remembered. "So, we're in the first quarter and Johnny's out there and our cadence back in that time was Set-Hut. I was always famous for saying, 'Red 98 Red 98. Set-Hut!' Well I saw Johnny Lynch out there, I said, 'Set-Het, Red 98. Hey, Johnny Lynch!'"The shout-out impressed the rookie's Tampa Bay teammates."I came back to the huddle and it was so funny because all the guys said, 'You know Elway?' I said, yeah, we're tight," Lynch recounted.Years later San Francisco 49ers Hoodie , after they really had bonded, Lynch said Elway told him, "I was trying to loosen you up. I knew you were tight."Elway waited until after the game, however, to deliver the tip that really helped Lynch, who went on to earn nine trips to the Pro Bowl, including in all four of his seasons in Denver.Elway told Lynch he knew exactly when he was going to blitz and when he wasn't just by reading his eyes."I look at Johnny Lynch and if he kept looking at me, I knew I was OK, I knew he wasn't coming," Elway explained.If Lynch darted his eyes away, the Broncos QB knew Lynch was coming at him off the edge."I guess he figured if he didn't see me Cheap Customized San Francisco 49ers Jerseys , I didn't see him," Elway said. "I knew when he was coming. I told him that after the game and obviously he took that to heart."Lynch said Elway told him to "just look at me like you normally do. So, I used that throughout my career" to disguise his intentions.When he was offered the 49ers job last year, Lynch, who felt he might be too green, again sought Elway's advice."Yeah, he's been awesome. He's a great friend and he exposed me to the business," Lynch said. "I think the biggest thing, when I had this opportunity presented to me really quickly and had a short, finite time to give them an answer, he kind of gave me the confidence: 'You know what Nick Mullens Jersey , you can do this, just like anything else. You can be great at it.' And hearing that from him kind of emboldened me to feel that way."Their respective teams are heading in different directions. The 49ers have struggled since losing quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to a knee injury and are jockeying for the top overall pick in the 2019 draft. The Broncos have won three straight and are pushing for their first playoff appearance since 2015."He helped me out in the beginning but now it's like anything else, we're competing," Lynch said. "Fortunately, we're not in the same division and all, but he's been great. He's one of my best friends in life and we understand that we both have to serve our organizations well, but we can also continue to be great friends and that's what we are." WE WON A GAME!I know that puts a wedge in everyone’s drafting hopes, but this 49ers team needed a win more than anything. After everything they have been through something, ANYTHING even an ugly win would have been fine. Instead Nick Mullens comes out and carves the Oakland Raiders like they were a pee-wee team. I said the 49ers would win if C.J. Beathard could trust his receivers and pull the trigger. Well, we didn’t get Beathard, we got Mullens Nick Mullens 49ers Jersey , and he had no problem pulling the trigger. To be fair, a good number of his wide receivers were wide open—not much to anticipate there. There were also plays where Mullens hit the recievers in stride, even when he may not have intended to (that stupid George Kittle take-off comes to mind). But the Raiders are the Raiders. The 49ers won mostly because of that and less because of anything they did. The Raiders looked awful and weren’t even trying. The 49ers would have lost if...If they started C.J. Beathard. All joking aside, they would have lost if they weren’t able to take advantage of the Raiders gutted defense early. Mullens coming out and throwing touchdown after touchdown put the Raiders in an awful spot. They have nothing for pass catchers with the loss of Amari Cooper and forcing Derek Carr to start throwing when that’s apparent isn’t going to help anything. This of course goes in line with my other point, Carr isn’t a terrible quarterback. If the 49ers pass rush couldn’t take advantage of an awful offensive line, especially with a lead that may force some deeper throws, they were going to get destroyed. The pass rush had easily its best night of the year with four sacks in the first half alone. The 49ers won because...They executed. The defense still had holes opened up early in the game before settling in, but the offense was on fire for most of the night. We’ve talked about George’s Kittle’s absolutely (again) stupid catch and run. There’s also that awesome touchdown from Raheem Mostert indicating the Raider were not even trying. Nick Mullens gets credit because found wide open receivers for big gains. This in part goes to Kyle Shanahan’s play-calling (this is why those considering him on the hot seat are ridiculous). The Raiders are trash, but the 49ers are playing backups of backups and beating an NFL team, even if it’s one of the worst. That should say something.