John Lynch: Mykel Williams fits who we are, our culture

In the aftermath of selecting defensive lineman Mykel Williams, 49ers General Manager John Lynch told reporters that the club had to sweat out some moments before getting to No. 11.

Lynch even noted that San Francisco tried to trade up, but that effort was unsuccessful.

Still, the 49ers were able to get the player they wanted.

"The film is very impressive,” Lynch said, via transcript from the team. “Mykel is a big, good-looking kid in every way. He’s big, he’s tall, he’s long, he’s a great athlete, he’s tough, he’s smart, he’s versatile. He can play outside, he can play inside. He does all those things. I think the toughness — he played through an ankle injury last year and missed two games, but high-ankle sprains can be a tough deal, and to only miss two games and play as well as he did. Came through here on a 30 visit and really got a feel for the kid.

“And I just think all of that led us to this guy as a Niner. He fits who we are, our culture, and we pounced when he was there.”

Lynch added that he feels Williams has a lot of upside.

“His skillset is a guy that can rush with power, he is a good enough athlete where he’s got some wiggle,” Lynch said. “He’s extremely proficient, I think, when they run games. For that big of an athlete, I think he’s a really good stop-start. Sometimes those guys can get going, but it’s hard when a quarterback steps up, they can’t change direction. I think he can do that really well. He’s got a lot of attributes. He’s obviously got to come put them all together. But we’re excited to work with him.”

Williams was a two-time, second-team All-SEC selection at Georgia, recording 21.0 sacks with 21.5 tackles for loss in 40 games with the program.