SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The Niners said there will be days like this. There will be days like this, the Niners said.
Second-year quarterback and newly named starter Trey Lance had a rough day at San Francisco training camp Friday morning, but no one here is hitting the panic button just yet.
“There’s always going to be ups and downs. I’m more concerned right now with how we respond,” Lance told me after practice. “I thought it was a little sloppy on my part today. But we’ll keep getting better. It’s only Day 3, so we’ve got a lot of work to do.”
Early in team drills, Lance appeared to throw a pass slightly behind George Kittle that was picked off by sophomore safety Talanoa Hufanga. A few plays later, a deep ball intended for Ray-Ray McCloud hung in the clouds and good coverage by Charvarius Ward helped it fall incomplete.
Later, another pass intended for Kittle fell incomplete when the tight end appeared to slip and fall as the ball was released. Lance was high on a sideline pass to Kittle with cornerback Emmanuel Moseley in coverage. And finally, Lance’s start-and-stop throw to Brandon Aiyuk came off like a wounded duck flapping around so much, Ward couldn’t judge it well enough to get what should have been an interception.
Today’s question is one that can be repeated throughout the field: How much of this does Lance need with reps with the offense versus how much better is the defense?
At this point, it’s hard to say. The defense could easily be the best in the NFL. Nick Bosa can wreck any play at any time. Fred Warner appeared to get two TFLs on rushing attempts during team drills. The Niners have a great defensive backfield with depth to spare.
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People I talk to here tell me that Lance had a great spring and summer and has taken a greater command of the offense and focus. Deebo Samuel should be on the field with his new contract soon (more on that below), and the offensive line is going through a bit of musical chairs right now.
If Lance is struggling in a camp practice before the pads come on, no one here is worried. Lance has earned the chance to drive the car here, and I asked him why he thinks the organization has so much faith in a young quarterback taking over a playoff contender.
“I’m confident in myself, but I guess that’s a question for these guys,” Lance says. “They know I’ve got my back and I know they’ve got my back 100 percent. So I’m excited to start this year. I’m going to do my best to be as ready as possible Week 1 and up all preseason. . . I’ll be ready to go.”
Observations of the camp
There is a great sense of optimism here that Samuel’s contract extension will be done in the coming days. The prevailing thought has been that Samuel would wait for fellow WR DK Metcalf to make his deal before signing with the Niners. Metcalf’s deal included a record $30 million signing bonus, and now Samuel has a new mark to reach. Samuel and his agent will want a “win” in this deal, whether it’s average annual value that exceeds Tyreek Hill’s $30 million AAV, or a signing bonus that dwarfs Samuel’s , or record cash flow in the first three years of the deal.
Kyle Shanahan likes this roster more than any he’s had in his six years in San Francisco, but there’s a glaring weakness inside the offensive line. The retirement of Alex Mack wasn’t a surprise, but the team still needs Jake Brendel or Daniel Brunskill to win that job. Brunskill could also get right guard duty, and San Fran has had to move Jaylon Moore out at right tackle early in camp as Mike McGlinchey returns from a quad injury. The Niners feel good about Aaron Banks at left guard, but he’s still only a second-year player.
San Francisco would like to trade Jimmy Garoppolo to a non-NFC West team and get a draft pick in return. I would like to sleep eight hours without interruption at night. Everyone is doing and saying the right things here regarding the former franchise QB, but there is a very real possibility that the Niners will have to release Garoppolo before the final roster cuts when his peak success of 26.95 million dollars is blocked. Right Now. there’s no team that would reasonably trade for Garoppolo (and his contract), but that could change as quarterback competitions shake out around the league and/or key QBs go down with injuries. Still, people I talk to around the league say that if they needed Garoppolo, they would simply wait for the Niners to cut him and work out a deal for him. It’s a bit of a gamble, of course, but it’s logical. Shanahan even reiterated Friday that the team will do whatever is in the best interest of the organization, and that reasonably means cutting him and getting cap space.
I know, I know. It’s “best shape of my life” season at the start of every training camp in the NFL. I had been told I was coming to camp to watch Javon Kinlaw and how his body has improved, and watching him walk out of a meeting room Friday morning, the change was evident. Kinlaw seems to have turned some of his softness into lean muscle. He will return to practice from a knee injury soon and will be key to what DeMeco Ryans defense tries to do this year.
The 49ers have experienced a pretty significant brain drain at various coaching positions lately. They lost former DC Robert Saleh to the Jets and former OC Mike McDaniel to the Dolphins, and Ryans figures to be the next coordinator to get a head coaching job soon. John Lynch has assembled an impressive staff in the Bay Area, but his group could be next. Former Niners exec Martin Mayhew is now the GM in Washington, and AGM Adam Peters and director of player personnel Ran Carthon have gotten GM interviews in recent years and should get them very soon .