In his first career start last year, Trey Lance recorded 16 carries, most by quarterbacks in regular-season games in San Francisco 49ers franchise history.
In his third career start on Sunday, Lance had 13 carries, the third-most in the 49ers’ 76-year history.
Yes, 22-year-old Lance is already on the team’s record books. How long will he be on the field?
Intense use of Lance as a runner increases the chance of injury. And his apparent inconsistency about sliding to defend himself increases the odds of him being sidelined.
The 6-foot-4, 224-pound Lance said he felt “amazing” after recording 13 carries on the day of the 19-10 loss to the Bears. But he admitted Wednesday that he downgraded himself from “great” to “fine” after waking up with a sore neck the next morning.
He realized this after making three starts in the NFL. He’s no longer in North Dakota.
Trey Lance of the 49ers is one of 12 quarterbacks since 1960 to record at least 13 carries in multiple games. Do you want Lance to stand out? He has done so in just three career starts.
|
player |
game |
start |
|
lamar jackson |
twenty three |
50 |
|
cam newton |
11 |
144 |
|
Jalen Hurts |
Five |
20 |
|
Bobby Douglas |
Five |
53 |
|
Michael Vick |
Four |
115 |
|
Tim Tebow |
3 |
16 |
|
Kyler Murray |
3 |
47 |
|
Josh Allen |
3 |
61 |
|
Trey Lance |
2 |
3 |
|
Robert Griffin III |
2 |
42 |
|
Randall Cunningham |
2 |
135 |
|
Russell Wilson |
2 |
159 |
Source: pro-football-reference.com
running 49ers QB
Fastest attempt in a regular season game by a 49ers quarterback in team history:
|
Athlete (Date) |
No. |
|
|
1. |
Trey Lance (10-10-21) |
16 |
|
2. |
Jeff Garcia (10-14-01) |
14 |
|
3. |
Trey Lance (9-11-22) |
13 |
|
Four. |
Blaine Gabbert (10-2-16) |
12 |
|
Colin Kaepernick (9-21-14) |
12 |
|
|
6. |
Jeff Garcia (10-5-03) |
11 |
|
Jimmy Garoppolo (9-19-21) |
11 |
|
|
Colin Kaepernick (10-20-13) |
11 |
|
|
Steve Young (10-15-89) |
11 |
|
|
Steve Young (10-13-91) |
11 |
Source: pro-football-reference.com
“I’m not bigger, faster or stronger than most people,” said Lance, who sat out with a knee sprain after making his 16-carry debut. Guys close much faster.You have to learn to protect yourself just by being in a different situation and you have to know how important it is to stay healthy.”
If his first start is any indication, Lance needs to get plenty of practice in self-preservation.
He is one of 12 QBs since 1960 with 13 or more rushing attempts in multiple games. And head coach Kyle Shanahan believes he will continue to use Lance extensively as a runner this season as he grows out of his pocket. On Sunday, Shanahan called six designed runs for five scrambles and Lance, where he had two sneaks. In his 16-carry start for Lance last year, Shanahan called his QB runs designed nine times.
Shanahan said Wednesday that Lance will have to choose when to defend himself.
“You have to pick and choose,” said Shanahan. “Sliding is your best bet, but sometimes there are ways to move forward without taking hits. I think Trey did a pretty good job at that.”
Against the Bears, Lance made a head-first dive in the fourth quarter to avoid a sandwich between two defenders, but only finished one run on the slide.
His biggest collisions were 8-yard runs on 3 and 9 yards in the 3rd quarter. Lance put his head down to face All-Pro linebacker Loquan Smith. shoulder.
This wasn’t the only time Lance induced contact near the first-down marker.
In the second quarter, in a tie, Lance was hit by three defenders at the end of 13-yard runs of 3 and 13 yards. In the 3rd quarter, with QB power, he trailed Smith back with a 3-yard up-the-gat run for 3 and 2. In the fourth quarter, in a scramble, Lance trailed a defender and got a hit off Smith on a 2nd-2 3-yard run.
“Most of the time, when you’re running between tackles or on third down, you don’t slide and go 4-2 and give up the play and send the defense down the field,” Lance said.
Shanahan said: “He still has to play soccer.”
correct. But Lance admits he hasn’t been keen on defending himself during his football career, skating for the first time at any level in last month’s pre-season opener. Last year, pass rusher Nick Bosa and quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo said Lance needed to mix in some slides because rookies often finished runs like fullbacks.
On Sunday, in the 2nd and 15th draws, instead of hitting the deck, Lance hit Smith with a 5-yard run.
“There are always better decisions I could make,” Lance said. could have gotten off a step faster or chopped off to find an edge and get off.
Like other areas of his game, Lance is a work in progress. He’s already on the record books, but fewer carries ending in collisions make him more likely to stay on the field.
“He could be attacked,” said Shanahan. “There will be things he can protect himself from, and that’s what he and we are going to work on.”
Eric Branch covers the 49ers for the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: ebranch@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Eric_Branch
Comments
Post a Comment