SANTA CLARA — On Sunday, Trey Lance had arguably his worst follow of coaching camp.
On Tuesday, he had his finest. He was crisp, fast-processing, and harmful.
In fact he was — the 49ers’ offense ran extra read-option performs and pistol-formation seems to be on Tuesday than they'd within the first two weeks of coaching camp, mixed.
They have been lastly operating the Trey Lance offense.
And in that offense, all the 49ers’ items appear to suit collectively, and the first-year beginning quarterback seems to be downright superior.
“The offense kicked our butt as we speak,” security Jimmie Ward mentioned on KNBR after follow.
Now, we don’t know if the change in ways was at all times deliberate for Tuesday or if it was applied to offer the younger quarterback some confidence. We can also’t rule out that Shanahan elevated the variety of choice runs as an enormous center finger to his protection, which has been incredible to start out camp.
No matter why the offense shifted, it confirmed that the 49ers’ offense should change with Lance on the helm and why it should.
However Shanahan gained’t be exhibiting off these adjustments so simply shifting ahead.
The previous No. 3 total choose has a distinct expertise degree than former starter Jimmy Garoppolo and a considerably completely different skillset, too.
To this point in camp, we’ve seen Lance prolong performs along with his legs, run the ball up the center, and push passes downfield thus far in coaching camp — issues Garoppolo was both incapable or unwilling to do. However earlier than Tuesday, Lance was operating the identical offense as his non-running backups, Nate Sudfeld and Brock Purdy — he was operating the Garoppolo offense, the 49ers’ baseline assault.
That’s why we are able to solely learn a lot into the younger quarterback’s performances at coaching camp — solely a lot of the playbook was getting used.
That was by no means going to final.
The query is how a lot it should change from right here.
Shanahan isn’t one for freely giving state secrets and techniques. Whereas Lance will play within the preseason, I don’t anticipate we’ll see far more than what was on show Tuesday in these contests — if we see any zone-read in any respect.
And Shanahan may have the ability to get away with it, too, as a result of the Niners may have greater than two weeks following their last regular-season sport to follow behind closed doorways.
That’s when the complete Lance offense — all of the bells and whistles — will probably be put in, I guess.
“We haven’t given new playbooks out this yr but,” Shanahan mentioned Tuesday.
But? Intriguing…
It’s comprehensible why the Niners’ coach needs his sport movie to be bland forward of Week 1’s matchup with the Bears. With the Niners being nine-point favorites in Chicago after which 8.5-point Week 2 favorites at dwelling towards the Seahawks means, we would not see the complete Lance Dance till Week 3.
However you possibly can’t preserve an excellent factor totally hidden for lengthy. There had been hints of the brand new offense earlier than Tuesday — a slip in a press convention, a number of performs snuck right into a fast-paced scrimmage — however that follow was the largest trace but.
The utilization of the pistol formation was an enormous giveaway.
When Shanahan was on the airplane getting back from Lance’s non-public exercise, he began drawing up performs for the quarterback and exhibiting them to common supervisor John Lynch. It’s an enthralling story of a coach falling for a quarterback — basic love-at-first sight stuff.
Shanahan was requested what sort of performs he drew up on that airplane at the beginning of coaching camp.
“I'm going again to them on a regular basis. I don’t bear in mind precisely what it was, but it surely’s simply performs that you simply do, and ‘hey look, you are able to do this play in pistol,'” Shanahan mentioned.
The Niners didn’t run pistol with Garoppolo below middle — there was no must, as he was not somebody you needed operating the ball. However Shanahan did use that formation when he had Robert Griffin III as his quarterback in Washington. Griffin threw for 3,200 yards and ran for an additional 815 as a rookie, profitable Rookie of the Yr in 2013.
“I believe one factor that I do know Kyle’s at all times prided himself on, and we as a workers, [is] difficult your self to do issues that suit your participant skillsets and what makes them most comfy,” former Niners offensive coordinator and present Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel mentioned final yr. “You attempt to keep away from, ‘Properly, we’ve at all times carried out it this fashion.’ You’re evolving to no matter your participant skillsets are.”
Query the long-term viability of such an offense if you would like, however one in all Lance’s finest abilities is operating the ball. He may not be Lamar Jackson or RG3, however he’s an aesthetically pleasing runner with some actual giddy-up within the open subject, as he confirmed off Tuesday with a 65-yard landing scamper on a zone-read preserve. Shanahan has a run-first offense and he lives for creating battle for defenses. The mere risk of the quarterback operating the ball creates a cacophony of battle for opponents. So whereas Lance’s profession will probably be outlined by how nicely he throws the ball, he will probably be operating the ball lots, too, particularly this season.
Lance will evolve as a quarterback with expertise. The shift to a extra tailor-made offense doesn’t absolve him of the sins he’s proven all through camp. However Shanahan was at all times going to need to evolve with him. Tuesday flashed the younger quarterback’s simple expertise and the top coach and offensive play caller’s intelligent pragmatism.
It’s a stellar mixture. Right here’s hoping we see greater than a touch as soon as the season begins.