Snap-by-snap thoughts from Trey Lance’s NFL debut

A snap-by-snap look at Trey Lance’s #49ers debut vs. the Chiefs.

Trey Lance made his NFL debut for the 49ers in their preseason opener against the Chiefs. Lance entered the game with 8:07 in the first quarter and played the rest of the first half.

Here are some observations from each snap he took:

First series

– First-and-10: Play action to start, and Lance looked like he wanted to take a deep shot. It wasn’t there so he scrambled right and fired a dart to Brandon Aiyuk, who dropped it. That’s a good play from the rookie.

– Second-and-10: Handoff to Trey Sermon for 2 yards.

– Third-and-8: Lance was sacked by Chiefs DL Chris Jones, who plowed through starting RG Daniel Brunskill.

Second series

– First-and-10: An 80-yard touchdown on a deep shot to Trent Sherfield. Oh my.

Third series

– First-and-10: No long throw this time, it’s a handoff to Sermon for five yards.

– Second-and-5: Another handoff to Sermon goes for four yards.

– Third-and-1: Sermon plows ahead for a first down. He fumbled, but the 49ers recovered.

– First-and-10: Quick throw on a screen to Jauan Jennings goes for 10 yards. Good, accurate throw on the screen with good timing.

– First-and-10: This is Lance’s first snap in the red zone. He handed to Wayne Gallman for a pickup of 3 yards.

– Second-and-7: He’s sacked. The Chiefs brought a blitz off his blind side and he never saw the rusher who never got touched. Not a good look for the 49ers’ offensive line.

– Third-and-14: Back outside the red zone. More pressure forces Lance to quickly get the ball to Gallman on a check down. Not much panic, kept his eyes down the field — this was a good rep for the rookie to set up a short field goal.

Fourth series

– First-and-10: Tough starting field position for the rookie. He’s inside his own 1-yard-line. Play action, nice and calm and he finds tight end Charlie Woerner for a 34-yard pickup. The throw traveled roughly 15 yards in the air. That’s excellent execution in a very difficult spot.

– First-and-10: Handoff to Sermon goes nowhere.

– Second-and-10: Another boot leg left and nobody was open. Lance scrambled and found River Cracraft on the sideline. Cracraft dropped it. That’s two drops on good throws in scramble situations.

– Third-and-10: Cracraft gets another chance on an out route. This time he hauls it in but he’s just shy of the first down marker. Good, accurate throw on the out that time.

Fifth series

– First-and-10: It’s a toss to Sermon for a short gain.

– Second-and-9: Sermon goes up the middle for a pickup of a yard.

– Third-and-8: A dime under pressure on a deep out to Richie James is dropped. It would’ve been a first down. That’s the third drop by the 49ers WRs. The good news for San Francisco is that deep out was right on the money and had plenty of pace. That’s not a throw where Garoppolo excels. All three incompletions for Lance were drops.

Sixth series

– First-and-10: 1:42 left in the half, this is a good situation for Lance to be in. His first throw is a misfire high to James.

– Second-and-10: Quick throw on a screen to Jennings is a good sidearm throw on the money. It led to a pickup of 11.

– First-and-10: Lance is nearly intercepted on a throw to Woerner. That’s his first major mistake of the night. It should’ve been caught, but the Chiefs corner couldn’t hold on.

– Second-and-10: Another look to Woerner is wide. He never looked comfortable in the pocket. Aaron Banks got pushed back a little bit and Lance didn’t step into the throw.

– Third-and-10: Another sack. Rookie Jaylon Moore got beat bad by the defensive end. Tough series for the offensive line. That’s the third time Lance has been sacked and it’s hard to blame him on any of them.

Seventh series

– First-and-10: The Chiefs try a 62-yard field goal late in the first half. It’s no good. Lance takes over with 37 seconds left on the Chiefs’ 48. Another sack, this time Lance drops the ball, but he fell on top of it. Banks the right guard got worked again.

– Second-and-18: A quick throw to Sermon for a short pickup. Lance was again under duress and found the running back. Moore the left tackle got beat again and Lance took another hit from.

– Third-and-15: Another throw that should’ve been intercepted. Lance tried to force one in to Jennings and a Chiefs defensive back got two hands on the throw but couldn’t bring it in. That’s another pretty bad mistake.

Lance’s first half stats: 5-12, 128 yards, TD

Eighth series

– First-and-10: Lance is getting the second half to get a few more plays. His first throw is wide as pressure started getting to him. He couldn’t quite step into the throw.

– Second-and-10: A toss to Sermon goes for five yards.

– Third-and-5: A slant to Travis Benjamin is incomplete. Good throw, but the coverage on Benjamin was good.

Lance’s second half stats: 0-2, 0 yards

Overall: 5-14, 128 yards, TD

Take away the drops and it was a very strong debut for the No. 3 pick. It’s clear he needs reps though. He didn’t always look super comfortable in the pocket, but that’s to be expected for a QB making his debut after not playing in a real game for more than a year.

He didn’t get to show off his speed in the open field, but he moved around well and showed off his mobility to buy time on a couple plays, but there were no designed runs. His arm strength was on display as well with some strong throws on outs and the deep touchdown to Trent Sherfield. Overall this was an extremely encouraging start for Lance.