Observations from day 9 of 49ers training camp; Trey Lance leads a touchdown drive

Here is what stood out from the 49ers ninth practice during training camp in Santa Clara.

Trey Lance

It was an up and down day for Lance who finished 11-19 with one touchdown and an interception which went the other way for a defensive touchdown.

Lance struggled through the early portion of team drills. After hitting on his first two throws, his next four ended up on the turf due to a near pick, a drop, and a couple which were just off the mark.

The 49ers offense then transitioned into a move the ball period and quickly went three and out. On first down, Lance held onto the ball too long allowing Kerry Hyder to reach him for a sack. After running the ball on second down to pick up 12, Lance threw incomplete to Deebo Samuel deep down the left sideline.

On the next possession, Lance found Brandon Aiyuk on the left side with a short throw to convert third and five. On his next throw, Lance found Deebo Samuel over the middle for a gain of 19.

Lance struggled on the second to last possession. His pass on first down was off the mark to Brandon Aiyuk and Emmanuel Moseley nearly came away with the interception. Jimmie Ward made up for Moseley’s missed opportunity a couple plays later when he stepped in front of a short throw from Lance to Elijah Mitchell in the right flat and took it into the endzone for a touchdown. On this play, the 49ers defense sent pressure with man coverage behind it. Lance was late with the throw leading to the worst possible outcome for the offense.

Lance and the 49ers offense finished the day on a high note.

Taking over on their own 35 with 1:15 left to play and down by four, Lance used his arm and legs to quickly move the offense down the field. Then with six second left and the ball on the twenty, Lance avoided pressure, moved to his left and found Ray Ray McCloud in the right side of the endzone for a touchdown. Lance was 5-6 on the drive and ran twice for 11 yards.

George Kittle

The veteran tight end was targeted five times on the day. Early in team drills, Kittle beat Fred Warner deep down the right sideline but the throw from Trey Lance was off the mark.

Kittle had a big role in the success of the final two-minute drill. He opened the possession up with a catch and run down the left side for a gain of 17. He then caught back-to-back targets to set up the game winning touchdown throw.

Deebo Samuel

Samuel had a pair of key grabs during the two successful possessions in the second half of practice. The first was a grab over the middle for a gain of 19.

With the offense facing third and five during the final drive of practice, Samuel found a soft spot in the defense and Lance got him the ball for a gain of six.

The connection between Lance and Samuel is still a work in progress, but you can see it coming together.

Tyrion Davis-Price

On the possession following Lance’s pick-6, Davis-Price stepped in to get the first team offense moving. The rookie looked solid, picking up 21 yards while handling the ball on four of the first five plays.

Davis-Price has continued to get better each day. He has the power and agility to work well in this offense.

Jeff Wilson Jr.

Wilson continued his impressive camp today. Working with the second unit, the veteran gained 18 yards on three carries to open a drive which would end in scoring position.

Trey Sermon

The second year running back had a pair of runs which netted big yardage. Early in practice Sermon followed his blockers for a nice gain over the right side. Then during the move the ball portion of practice, Sermon took a toss around the right side for a gain of eight before being knocked out of bounds.

This was a good day overall for the 49ers run game.

Ray Ray McCloud

McCloud had another strong practice. The free agent acquisition came up with a pair of receptions to help Nate Sudfeld lead the second unit into scoring range on its first move the ball possession. He followed that up by getting open in the endzone and catching Trey Lance’s throw for a touchdown as time expired.

McCloud has been outplaying Jauan Jennings by a wide margin over the last couple of practices.

Jimmie Ward

Ward stated this offseason that he was focused on reaching the Pro Bowl, acknowledging he’d have to make more plays to do so. He did just that today when he stepped in front of Trey Lance’s pass to Elijah Mitchell and took it to the house for six.

Ward is playing at a very high level right now.

Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles

Flannigan-Fowles made his presence felt today by dropping Jeff Wilson Jr at the line of scrimmage to stop a run play. A little later he was all over Ross Dwelley, knocking away the pass from Nate Sudfeld.

Azeez Al-Shaair

Showed off his speed by running down Elijah Mitchell to drop the running back for no gain on a sweep to the left side.

Samuel Womack

The rookie has been solid in coverage so far in training camp. Today he stepped up in the running game, stopping Tyrion Davis-Price at the line of scrimmage on a run to the left side.

Kevin Givens

Givens beat Spencer Burford off the line and dropped Jeff Wilson for a loss on an inside run.

Kerry Hyder Jr.

Hyder was able to get to Trey Lance for a sack. The ball was supposed to come out quick, but Lance held onto it and Hyder eventually got to the quarterback.

Spencer Burford

Burford decisively won all for of his reps in one-on-one pass rush drills against the defense. The rookie is so smooth in pass protection, showing patience, a good base, and quick hands.

Jason Poe

Poe has shown a great deal of improvement over this offseason. The rookie undrafted free agent won each of his three reps during one-on-ones, keeping Kevin Givens, Robert Nkemdiche, and Tomasi Laulile.

Kemoko Turay

Turay absolutely destroyed Justin Skule during one-on-ones. The duo matched up four times, and Turay used a variety of moves to easily get to the quarterback each time.

Jauan Jennings

Jennings has been in a bit of a funk this week. Today he dropped a pass while running wide open over the middle and barely attempted to catch a pass down the right sideline from Nate Sudfeld.

This article has 5 Comments

  1. Jack,
    If the 49ers eventually release Jimmy G. does he go through waivers or is he a free agent?

    1. Hi OldCoach

      I’m no Jack, but I’m betting no waivers if released. Garoppolo would be a free agent.

    2. At this point the 49ers can just keep Garoppolo right where he is. They might actually been gaining leverage for trade compensation.

      1. James Foster

        I agree with you James….Jimmy G is a value to hang onto….the niners will gain considerable leverage by using that space on the bench….

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