ESPN's Louis Riddick said he was "very, very, very, very, very, very, very close" to becoming 49ers GM and did not get the job because he and potential coach Josh McDaniels were a package deal. Riddick appeared Thursday on ESPN Radio and said the 49ers were "very sensitive about the relationship" between the coach and GM and that they were "trying to look for matches" concerning the two positions. Riddick: "It was either going to be him and I, or it wasn’t. Josh, for his personal reasons, decided that now wasn’t a good time. When he decided that -- which I was on board with that, obviously -- therefore I wasn’t in the running anymore." The team eventually hired Kyle Shanahan as coach and John Lynch as GM. Riddick said he had a "great interview" with 49ers CEO Jed York and Chief Strategy Officer & Exec VP/Football Operations Paraag Marathe. He said, "It went awesome. I got a lot of great feedback from them. I felt that my plan was rock solid, and if it was something that would’ve worked out for Josh and myself overall, then we would be there. But it had nothing to do with anything other than the fact that the pairing, it just wasn’t the right time for us to do that." Riddick noted he still wants to work with McDaniels "if that right situation comes up" and that he is "convinced more than ever now" that he could be a successful GM ("Freddie & Fitz," ESPN Radio, 2/16).
