In August, a few days after Solomon Thomas’ NFL debut in the preseason opener at Kansas City, 49ers general manager John Lynch said plenty of people in his circle had noticed the rookie defensive lineman.
And that wasn’t surprising: Thomas set the tone on his first career snap when he had a quarterback pressure that led to an interception.
“It’s early, but the way he played the other night,” Lynch said, “I had a bunch of people going ‘Wow.’ And that’s why he was the No. 3 pick in the draft.”
Five months later, after Thomas’ rookie season, some might be wondering why, exactly, he was the No.