Tag: trey lance kyle shanahan

Trey Lance is fine not being a team captain: ‘I voted for every single one of those guys’

49ers starting quarterback Trey Lance was not named a team captain, but it doesn’t seem to bother him at all.

Trey Lance may be the San Francisco 49ers’ starting quarterback in 2022 — head coach Kyle Shanahan has made no bones about that — but if Lance, the second-year man from North Dakota State, wants to be a team captain, he’ll have to earn it. Because as much as it’s common to make your starting quarterback a captain, that didn’t happen when the 49ers announced theirs on Wednesday.

The list of captains, per our friends at Niners Wire, is fairly formidable.

DL Arik Armstead
DE Nick Bosa
TE George Kittle
FS Jimmie Ward
LB Fred Warner
LT Trent Williams

“I just didn’t want to put seven on there,” Shanahan said of Lance’s omission. “Deebo (Samuel) was eight. … We just wanted to go with six. They don’t allow eight to the coin toss, I don’t believe. It’s also his first year of starting for us. There’s not many rookies who end up being the captains. I know this is his second year, but he’s a rookie for us in terms of this is his first time being our starting quarterback.”

If Lance was upset by it, he certainly didn’t let on.

“Obviously, that’s a goal of mine, but I don’t think you can look at any six of those guys and be like, ‘That guy’s a bozo,’ because those guys have played football at a very, very high level. So yeah, the situations are different. I voted for every single one of those guys, so I think each and every one of them deserves it. But yeah, it’s definitely a goal of mine moving forward. But those guys have all proved it, and that’s what this league is all about.”

No bozos, indeed, and if the 49ers were to name a seventh team captain, I think we can all agree that Deebo Samuel would be the better choice at this point. For Lance, Job 1 is to overcome an iffy preseason to define his new role as the marquee guy on the roster of a potential Super Bowl contender, captain or not.

49ers quarterback Trey Lance’s 2022 preseason was a bit of a mixed bag

That process gets underway on Sunday when the 49ers take on the Bears at Soldier Field.

Why Trey Lance might start for the 49ers sooner than you think

49ers first-round quarterback Trey Lance might be starting in Kyle Shanahan’s system sooner than some believe.

Last Thursday night, the San Francisco 49ers shocked many in the football world when they drafted North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance with the third-overall selection in the 2021 NFL draft. For many, this was a surprise, because all the tea leaves seemed to be pointing towards Alabama passer Mac Jones as the selection. Instead, the 49ers made the man from Fargo their next quarterback.

But when you start to dig in deeper to the prospect, you might see that Lance is an ideal fit for what Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers’ need at the quarterback position.

There are a few reasons why this pairing would be ideal. We can divide this into three elements: Pre-snap, post-snap passing, and post-snap athleticism.

Let’s start with what happens before the play even begins.

49ers draft Trey Lance: Instant analysis of the No. 3 pick

The 49ers have their new franchise QB in the person of North Dakota State’s Trey Lance.

With the third pick in the 2021 NFL draft, the San Francisco 49ers select Trey Lance, quarterback, North Dakota State.

Analysis: Lance’s upside is extremely enticing. Wherever he ends up Lance could be a star, especially if he’s allowed to sit behind a veteran and learn the intricacies of the NFL game. Lance’s payoff could be huge if the development is handled the right way, because he has every possible physical and mental trait to succeed at the NFL level at the game’s most important position.

Grade: A. Lance’s college quarterbacks coach Randy Hedberg told me recently that Lance might benefit from sitting a year in the NFL, which he would be able to do in San Francisco. But he also ran a lot of stuff with the Bison that Kyle Shanahan is familiar with (Y-throwback FTW), and Lance gives Shanahan every bit of the ability to run his advanced offense over time, and the kind of mobility and second-reaction ability that is required in today’s NFL.