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Report: Ex-49ers GM Baalke never spoke to his team's coaches

Michael Zagaris / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Former San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke's isolation from his team's coaches could have contributed to his downfall.

Baalke, who was fired alongside head coach Chip Kelly over the weekend, never spoke to the 49ers' coaches, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports.

Not to discuss the players they liked, nor anything else related to football.

That's a far cry from how most NFL front offices work.

Rapoport didn't share any specific examples of where this schism hurt the 49ers, but his colleague Mike Garafolo did. Kelly and others in the 49ers organization wanted to draft Dak Prescott in the spring, according to Garafolo, but Baalke didn't draft him.

Baalke's inability to coexist with Jim Harbaugh despite the latter taking the 49ers to the Super Bowl led to Harbaugh's exit. The team has since fired two head coaches, Jim Tomsula and Kelly, after only one year on the job each.

Now the 49ers must hire a new general manager and a fourth head coach in four seasons.

It's a good bet that the pair will actually speak to each other.

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