Trey Lance finally made his much-anticipated debut for the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday. Based on his opening preseason performance in the 19-16 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, plenty of work still needs to be done with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
However, Lance's NFL career couldn't have started any better, delivering an 80-yard touchdown strike to wide receiver Trent Sherfield on just his second preseason pass attempt. Unfortunately for Lance, it all went downhill from there as he finished the game just 5-of-14 for 128 yards. Lance played a total of 29 snaps, finishing with a touchdown and a passer rating of 93.8.
More room for improvement for Lance after the up-and-down debut
Lance may have had an up-and-down debut, but not all of the blame can be pinned on the former North Dakota State quarterback. On his first attempt, three of Lance's nine incompletions were dropped balls, including a pass to starting wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk.
It didn't help that San Francisco's offensive line could not protect him for some of his snaps, with Lance taking four sacks in the loss to the Chiefs. However, it's important to mention that the Niners' offensive line was not at full strength with starting center Alex Mack and left tackle Trent Williams both sidelined.
Lance refused to blame the offensive line, saying that they did a great job against Kansas City and that it is on him 100 percent as far as protection goes. Lance was drafted high by the 49ers because of his dual threat skills, but he could not display his rushing prowess on Saturday, recording zero attempts against the Chiefs.
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Lance thrills with a long TD pass, but Garoppolo is still the favorite to be Week 1 QB
Despite Lance's struggles, he did produce a moment of brilliance that left 49ers fans wanting more from their future starting quarterback. Lance managed to fool the Kansas City defense with a solid play-action fake to the right, rolling to his left before firing a 45-yard cannon to a wide-open Sherfield, who ran unopposed to the end zone for San Francisco's first touchdown of the game.
Lance's teammates celebrated his touchdown pass, including Niners' quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, whose job as Week 1 starter appears safe at the moment after Lance's so-so debut. Garoppolo started the game for the 49ers, completing all three of his passes for 26 yards in his lone drive for San Francisco.
It could have been much better for Garoppolo, but his third-down conversion to Aiyuk was nullified after tight end Charlie Woerner was called for an offensive pass interference penalty.
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