Aaron Lynch (American football)

Aaron Lynch

Lynch with the Chicago Bears in 2019
Personal information
Born:	(1993-02-08) February 8, 1993 (age 31) Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:	285 lb (129 kg)
Career information
High school:	Island Coast (Cape Coral, Florida)
College:	Notre Dame (2011) South Florida (2012–2013)
Position:	Defensive end
NFL draft:	2014  / Round: 5 / Pick: 150
Career history
San Francisco 49ers (2014–2017) Chicago Bears (2018–2019) Jacksonville Jaguars (2020) Montreal Alouettes (2024)*
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
First-team All-AAC (2013)
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles: 111 Sacks: 21.0 Fumble recoveries: 1 Interceptions: 1 Pass deflections: 11
Player stats at PFR

Aaron Lynch (born March 8, 1993) is an American professional gridiron football defensive end who is a free agent. He was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round of the 2014 NFL draft. He played college football at South Florida and Notre Dame.

Early life

Lynch attended Island Coast High School in Cape Coral, Florida. ^[1] He led the team to 11–2 record and Florida 2B state semifinal playoff appearance as senior in 2010. He also recorded 31 solo tackles and 10.5 sacks during senior campaign. He played in the U.S Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio, Texas in 2011.

Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com , Lynch was listed as the No. 3 defensive end in the nation. ^[2] After de-committing from Florida State, he re-committed to Notre Dame over offers from Florida and Miami. ^[3]

College career

In 2011, Lynch enrolled a semester early at Notre Dame and was able to participate in spring practice. He worked his way onto the second-team and dominated in the annual Blue-Gold game. ^[4] In his freshman season, he played in 12 games, starting in 6 of them. He recorded 33 tackles including 7 tackles for loss, a team high 5.5 sacks, and a team high of 14 quarterback hurries. He was awarded a 1st team selection on The 11th annual Football Writers Association of America Freshman All-America Team ^[5]

In April 2012, Lynch decided to transfer from Notre Dame, citing a desire to return closer to his home. ^[6] After pondering his options, he announced his transfer to USF. ^[7] He applied for a waiver to play immediately but the NCAA denied his request, forcing him to sit out the 2012 season. ^[8]

As a junior, Lynch led the Bulls with six sacks and 12.5 tackles for loss, playing in all 12 games. He finished with 30 total tackles and added a fumble recovery returned for a touchdown in a 13–10 win over the Connecticut Huskies. ^[9] Lynch had a strong finish to the season despite the Bulls' 3–9 record, totaling all six sacks in the last seven games. ^[10]

Lynch announced in December 2013 that he would declare for the 2014 NFL draft. ^[11]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand span	40-yard dash	10-yard split	20-yard split	20-yard shuttle	Three-cone drill	Vertical jump	Broad jump	Bench press
6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	249 lb (113 kg)	34 in (0.86 m)	10+1⁄4 in (0.26 m)	4.69 s	1.52 s	2.63 s	4.61 s	7.46 s	29.0 in (0.74 m)	9 ft 9 in (2.97 m)	18 reps
All values from NFL Combine & Pro Day [12] [13]

San Francisco 49ers

Lynch with the San Francisco 49ers in 2014

Lynch was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round with the 150th overall pick of the 2014 NFL draft. ^[14]

Lynch was given an opportunity and assisted on four tackles and made two solo tackles on November 9 against the New Orleans Saints. His six tackles in addition to his pass defended helped the 49ers excel in an overtime battle to defeat the Saints and remain in the playoff picture. Lynch finished his rookie season recording 23 tackles, six sacks, and four passes defensed with three starts in 16 appearances. ^[15] In the 2015 season, he appeared in 14 games and started all but one of them. He had 6.5 sacks, 38 total tackles, and three passes defensed. ^[16] He was suspended for the first four games of the 2016 season for a violation of the NFL's substance abuse policy. ^[17] He appeared in seven games and started three in the 2016 season. He recorded 1.5 sacks and 13 total tackles. ^[18] In the 2017 season, Lynch did not appear in the season opener with back injury. He played in the next five games before suffering a calf injury against the Washington Redskins in Week 6, which sidelined him until Week 14. ^[19] He had one sack, nine total tackles, and one fumble recovery. ^[20]

Chicago Bears

On March 15, 2018, Lynch signed a one-year contract with the Chicago Bears. ^{[21] [22]} He played in 13 games with three starts, recording 16 tackles, three sacks, and an interception. ^[23]

On April 1, 2019, Lynch re-signed with the Bears. ^[24] In Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers, Lynch recorded one tackle and sacked Aaron Rodgers once as the Bears lost 10–3. ^[25]

Jacksonville Jaguars

On May 5, 2020, Lynch signed a one-year contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars. ^[26] He retired from football on August 18, citing personal reasons. ^{[27] [28]} After two months of retirement, on October 21, Lynch was reinstated back to the Jaguars' active roster. ^[29]

In Week 12 against the Cleveland Browns, Lynch recorded his first sack as a Jaguar on Baker Mayfield during the 27–25 loss. ^[30]

On March 18, 2024, after three years of inactivity, Lynch had a workout with the Cleveland Browns. ^[31]

On May 10, 2024, Lynch was listed on the roster for the 2024 Miami Dolphins rookie minicamp roster. ^[32]

Montreal Alouettes

On May 20, 2024, it was announced that Lynch had signed with the Montreal Alouettes. ^[33] He was released on June 2. ^[34]

NFL career statistics

Legend
Bold	Career high

Year	Team	Games		Tackles					Interceptions					Fumbles
		GP	GS	Cmb	Solo	Ast	Sck	TFL	Int	Yds	TD	Lng	PD	FF	FR	Yds	TD
2014	SFO	16	3	23	17	6	6.0	9	0	0	0	0	4	0	0	0	0
2015	SFO	14	13	38	30	8	6.5	13	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	0
2016	SFO	7	3	13	12	1	1.5	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2017	SFO	7	0	9	5	4	1.0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0
2018	CHI	13	3	16	13	3	3.0	4	1	20	0	20	1	0	0	0	0
2019	CHI	16	0	6	4	2	2.0	3	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
2020	JAX	8	0	6	5	1	1.0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
		81	22	111	86	25	21.0	37	1	20	0	20	11	0	1	0	0

References

1. "Aaron Lynch's High School Timeline". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
2. Aaron Lynch – Yahoo Sports
3. Aaron Lynch Commits To Notre Dame Archived February 1, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
4. "Five things we learned: The 82nd Blue-Gold game". Inside the Irish. April 16, 2011. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
5. FWAA NAMES 2011 FRESHMAN ALL-AMERICA TEAM
6. Aaron Lynch transferring from ND
7. DE Aaron Lynch to South Florida
8. "NCAA denies hardship waiver for USF Bulls transfer Aaron Lynch". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
9. Eaton-Robb, Pat (October 12, 2013). "USF slips past UConn, 13–10". Daytona Beach News-Journal. Associated Press. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
10. "2013 South Florida Bulls Schedule and Results". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
11. Fortuna, Matt (December 17, 2013). "South Florida DE Lynch declares for draft". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
12. "Aaron Lynch Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
13. "Aaron Lynch, South Florida, DE, 2014 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
14. Price, Taylor (May 10, 2014). "San Francisco 49ers Draft USF LB Aaron Lynch". 49ers.com. Retrieved July 3, 2017.
15. "Aaron Lynch". www.nfl.com. NFL. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
16. "Aaron Lynch 2015 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
17. "Aaron Lynch banned 4 games for violating substance abuse policy". ESPN.com. July 15, 2016. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
18. "Aaron Lynch 2016 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
19. "Cousins inconsistent as Redskins hold on to beat 49ers". USA TODAY. Associated Press. October 15, 2017. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
20. "Aaron Lynch 2017 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
21. Wiltfong Jr., Lester A. (March 15, 2018). "Chicago Bears sign Aaron Lynch". WindyCityGridiron.com. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
22. Mayer, Larry (March 15, 2018). "Bears bolster defense by signing Lynch". ChicagoBears.com. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
23. "Aaron Lynch 2018 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
24. Mayer, Larry (April 1, 2019). "Bears ink Aaron Lynch to one-year deal". ChicagoBears.com. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
25. "Packers D, Aaron Rodgers beat Bears 10–3 in opener". ESPN.com. Associated Press. September 5, 2019. Retrieved September 5, 2019.
26. "Jaguars Sign Defensive End Aaron Lynch". Jaguars.com. May 5, 2020. Archived from the original on July 21, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
27. Oehser, John (August 17, 2020). "Lynch to be placed on reserve/retired list". Jaguars.com. Retrieved August 18, 2020.
28. "NFL training camp 2020: Injuries abound, Brady's biggest fan and a sleeping Titan awakens". ESPN.com. August 18, 2020. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
29. DiRocco, Mike (October 21, 2020). "DE Lynch ending retirement to rejoin Jaguars". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
30. "Cleveland Browns at Jacksonville Jaguars – November 29th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
31. "Report: Aaron Lynch has workout with Browns". nbcsports.com. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
32. "Former NFL DE Aaron Lynch participating in Dolphins rookie minicamp". Dolphins Wire. May 10, 2024. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
33. "Montreal Alouettes sign longtime NFL DL Aaron Lynch". Montreal Alouettes. May 20, 2024.
34. https://www.cfl.ca/transactions/

External links

• Montreal Alouettes bio
• Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio
• South Florida Bulls bio