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John Lynch: Free agency gave 49ers flexibility for draft

San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch spent the past few weeks -- and the team's exorbitant amount of cap space -- filling gaps on the roster. Lynch believes those moves frees him up to go any which way with the No. 2 overall pick in the upcoming 2019 NFL Draft in five weeks.

"In terms of what we did, it gave us flexibility," Lynch told Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area on Wednesday at Ohio State's Pro Day. "We had some ideas of areas where we had to get better. And what we did gave us flexibility to just focus on going out and getting the best player available, particularly with that top spot, regardless of the position."

Thus far, the Niners added linebacker Dee Ford in a trade, signed linebacker Kwon Alexander, running back Tevin Coleman, corner Jason Verrett, linebacker David Mayo and receiver Jordan Matthews, in addition to re-upping several of their own depth players.

The addition of Ford particularly allows the 49ers to go in several directions with the No. 2 overall pick. Drafting a pass rusher high, however, remains a likely outcome. If the 49ers don't trade out of the No. 2 slot, adding one of the top QB disrupters is the best value on the board for Lynch.

To that end, the 49ers met with OSU edge-rusher Nick Bosa in Ohio Wednesday. Bosa remains the most predicted player to land in San Francisco at this stage -- assuming Arizona takes QB Kyler Murray at No. 1. Teams can't ever have too many pass rushers, so adding Bosa to Ford wouldn't be a misuse of assets.

The previous day, Lynch and his brass met with Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, another option high in the draft to upgrade a defense that sorely needed help last year.

Needs remain on the roster, but the 49ers shelled out a significant amount of money to ensure they'd have the flexibility to go several directions at the top of the first round and beyond.

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