Kyle Shanahan explains Trey Lance’s on-field Absence
The third overall pick has seen just five snaps since Week 6.
The 49ers are rolling right now, sitting at 6-5 after an impressive 34-26 victory over the Minnesota Vikings.
Starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has been playing out of his skin of late, averaging an 111.88 passer rating over the previous five weeks.
Early in their campaign, San Francisco utilized Lance in red zone situations, appearing in Weeks 1, 3, 4 and 5, totalling one touchdown and one interception. Though Lance, has only taken five snaps at Jacksonville in Week 11.
Lance suffered a knee injury during his first start in early October and has sparingly seen the field since. Why? Allow Kyle Shanahan to explain.
“It’s more about me, to tell you the truth,” Shanahan said Monday, via Jennifer Lee Chan of NBCSportsBayArea.com. “In terms of calling plays, we get into a rhythm of attacking a defense and what fronts they are playing and what coverages. Every play kind of plays off the next play and you get a feel, our players do and I, of what we are going to.”
Lance’s inclusion makes things unpredictable for the opposing team, but Shanahan admitted it also makes his life more complex, with defenses also unforeseeable.
“What’s been hard on me, that I didn’t realize, is when you do bring in a different quarterback who gets a different set of plays, it’s almost the first play I’ve been seeing of a new defense,” Shanahan told local media. “You see what fronts and coverages they are doing but they are doing it completely to a plan as a threat of the runner at that position.
“I don’t know what to anticipate with it, and then I got to stay in it for a while to get a feel for that. And then you go back and that feels kind of off for the last guy, so it kind of hurts my rhythm a little bit of understanding what a defense is getting. That’s why personally as the year has gone I’ve gotten a little more away from it because I like to get a feel for what the defense is doing.”
In Lance’s absence, the 49ers have thrived — winning four of their last five — including a crucial divisional win over the Rams. With things looking smooth in the Bay, there’s no reason for the third overall pick to see game time in this moment.
Lance’s time will come, but for now Garoppolo is the captain of Shanahan’s ship, of that there is no doubt.
Kyle Shanahan reveals when Nick Bosa will be back
Fresh from practice today, Kyle Shanahan updated fans and media alike on the status of one of his most prized assets.
Fresh from practice today, Kyle Shanahan updated fans and media alike on the availability of one of his most prized assets.
Defensive stud Nick Bosa has found himself limited to individual work since training camp began in late July. The 23-year-old has been repetitively given a day off after three practices as part of a regimented rehab schedule to ensure Bosa comes back ready to go. The plan moving forward is to slowly ingratiate him into position drills with his d-line brethren.
Both the Niners and Bosa have hinted at the likelihood of a Week 1 appearance, and Shanahan echoed these sentiments in his press conference earlier today.
"That's what we're hoping for," Shanahan said. "If we stay on track, I think we'll see him next week."
Fellow big man Trent Williams is said to be fine despite leaving practice early with a hip/knee complaint. The move is said to be precautionary more than anything.
"We got him out," Shanahan said. "(He) didn't seem overly concerned but we gotta look at him when we get inside."
Meanwhile, former No. 14 overall draft choice, Javon Kinlaw is still recovering from a weeks-old shoulder injury. The sophomore defensive tackle worked with trainers during practice and is “week-to-week” according to Shanahan.
With NFL rosters needed to be officially cut from 90 to 85 by Tuesday (1PM ET), many are fighting for their pro football lives. Undrafted wideout Austin Watkins Jr. incredibly played through a broken foot in the 49ers preseason opener against the Chiefs.
Resultantly, the Alabama at Birmingham product will now be put on Injured Reserve according to the Niners head coach.
What now for Trey Lance and the 49ERS?
Trey Lance sent social media and the 49ers Faithful into a spin and now the thought on everyone’s minds is ‘When will Lance get more first-team reps?’ As for the answer, we’ll leave it to coach.
Trey Lance sent social media and the 49ers Faithful into a spin with an enticing debut (preseason) performance against Andy Reid’s Kansas City Chiefs in Santa Clara.
Lance gave 49ers their first look since being drafted by Kyle Shanahan with Pick 2 in the 2021 NFL Draft, going 5-for-14, with 128 Passing Yards, 1 TD and a 93.7 QB Rating.
What really sent the NFL world into overdrive though was Lance’s 80-yard touchdown bomb to Trent Sherfield, his first completion of the ballgame.
The thought on everyone’s minds is ‘When will Lance get more first-team reps?’ As for the answer, we’ll leave it to coach.
“I don’t know,” Shanahan told San Francisco reporters . “I haven’t really defined that for myself either. Just when I think it feels right, when he seems ready, when I think the team seems ready.
“I mean, we’ll continue to mix him in there. But I don’t plan on just doing that completely. But Trey, what he showed in that game is, you know, I wish I could have left them there longer. I know he enjoys playing and he’s only been able to play one game in over a year, but I think it was good for him to get out.
“I think he started out good, got a little excited sometimes which he does. And you get a little excited, some of your technique and stuff you lose which will be fun to watch with him. Trey’s a guy who’s tough on himself and loves to correct things and since we’ve had him he’s been very good at correcting mistakes.”
The most glaring error, according to the Niners head coach, occurred when Lance failed to throw the ball away and was resultantly sacked. It was one of four occasions where Lance was sacked by the Chiefs defense.
“I think the worst one was the one down in the red zone,” Shanahan said. “They did an all-out blitz and we were in an empty formation and he’s got to get rid of that to his hot throws. So that was the main one that was on him.
“On the other ones, you can always get rid of it when someone doesn’t hold up in protection too long, but I think it would have been tough to, especially some of the down and distance we were in. But there was one that he definitely needed to get rid of just because of the blitz that they brought.”
Lance has brought an electricity to the Niners, reminiscent of the excitement during their Super Bowl season of 2019. Whether he’s capable of delivering a similar outcome time will tell.
Though I can think of one man who is…
Why Kyle Shanahan nearly bailed on the 49ers before he began
There would be no Jimmy G, nor Trey Lance and more than likely no Super Bowl appearance. It’s fair to say Kyle Shanahan has changed the direction of a 49ers franchise who struggled to reclaim relevancy in the years post-Jim Harbaugh.
In an twist of events, Shanahan nearly bailed on an interview with San Francisco toward the end of the 2016 as he and the Atlanta Falcons geared up for Super Bowl LI.
Shanahan, then-Offensive Coordinator for Atlanta revealed to Peter Scharger and Sean McVay on the Flying Coach podcast, he nearly removed himself from the running.
“I almost canceled one just because I was so exhausted, and I almost canceled San Francisco,” Shanahan said, via David Bonilla of 49ersWebZone.com.
“It had nothing to do with San Francisco — it was just my whole goal in life was to be a head coach and stay a head coach. It wasn’t just to become one and say I got there.”
Then, San Francisco were nowhere near the tantalizing prospect of current day. The 49ers finished the 2016 season with a record of 2-14 and ranked 27th and 32nd in offense and defense respectively.
“When I looked at San Francisco, I was nervous because they didn’t have that setup, and they had changed coaches three years in a row,” Shanahan revealed.
“Their offense was ranked 31st. Their defensed was ranked 32nd. It wasn’t the best situation.”
Thankfully, for the Faithful Shanahan followed through with the interview and fell in love with the prospect.
“My wife asked me which [team] I liked the most,” Shanahan said. “I’m like, ‘Actually, the Niners is the only one I really feel good about,’ and it shocked her because she knew how I talked the morning before.”