Kyle Shanahan ‘pulling' For Trey Lance Ahead Of Preseason Return Vs. 49ers

Kyle Shanahan ‘pulling' for Trey Lance ahead of preseason return vs. 49ers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Kyle Shanahan has not wavered in his support for Trey Lance over the years.

Despite the 49ers trading three first-round picks to move up and select the young quarterback with the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, only for his San Francisco career to be derailed by injuries and inconsistent play before a 2023 trade to the Dallas Cowboys, Shanahan remains a believer in both Lance the player and person as he begins the next chapter of his career with the Los Angeles Chargers.

And so far through Los Angeles’ three preseason games, Lance is proving that he still belongs in the NFL.

Shanahan spoke to reporters Tuesday after 49ers training camp practice and was asked if he has noticed anything different in Lance’s preseason film thus far as the former San Francisco quarterback and his new team prepare for a matchup against the 49ers on Saturday at Levi’s Stadium.

“I haven’t got a chance to watch him,” Shanahan said. “I’m sure he does. The more he practices, the more he works, he’s only going to get better, so I expect to see him like that when I watch him, but haven’t got a chance to yet.”

Shanahan was asked if there is anything he can take away from the failed Lance experiment, and while it’s unclear who, if anyone, he would take now in a potential re-draft, he still believes the 49ers’ logic for selecting a quarterback was sound at the time.

“I take everything away from it, every situation,” Shanahan added. “I don’t want to sit here and evaluate Trey too much, I think I’ve done that before, but when I revisit that, we knew where our team was at and where it was going to be the next couple years, and we were committed to getting a rookie quarterback. We weren’t sure that it would be forever, but we thought that was important, contractually, where our team was at, in order to keep a good team together.

“So we knew we were going for a rookie, especially after a veteran left earlier that year. That was an option. So that was more of a plan in that way. Now, we can go back to what we thought and everything, which I have no problem doing any time, but I don’t want to sit here and evaluate Trey again.”

And now, as he prepares his team to face off against the former 49ers quarterback in Saturday’s preseason finale, he hopes the future is bright for a young player he has great admiration for.

“I’m pulling for Trey, I love Trey,” Shanahan concluded. “One of the best people I’ve been around and I really hope it works out for him.”

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