There could be a lot riding on the shoulders of Trey Lance if the second-year player is asked to helm the San Francisco 49ers offense in 2022. That is the plan, after all. Most expect the team to part ways with last season's starter, Jimmy Garoppolo, making the 21-year-old Lance the most likely candidate to start. Of course, that is assuming you are dismissing any rumors of a certain recently-retired future Hall of Fame quarterback finding his way onto Kyle Shanahan's roster.
NFL Media analyst Brian Baldinger recently put together some film of Lance, pointing out some things the young quarterback needs to work on this offseason (h/t 95.7 The Game for the find).
"We have seen [Bills QB Josh Allen] do this over his 3 seasons to become elite," wrote Baldinger via a tweet. "No reason Trey can't do the same."
.@49ers @treylance09 did some very good things in 2021. But he needs to use this off season to tighten up some mechanics. We have seen @JoshAllenQB do this over his 3 seasons to become elite. No reason Trey can't do the same. #growth @957thegame #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/3j8iBrl7zO
— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) February 18, 2022
That is some high praise from the respected analyst.
Baldinger takes a look at the times Lance was sprinkled into the 49ers game plan early in the season, being quickly inserted in the place of Garoppolo to confuse opposing defenses and add a running threat from the quarterback. He also looks at some plays from his rarely more extended playing time.
As for the areas of improvement, Baldinger points out that the former No. 3 overall pick needs to be more accurate. Then he focused more on one other area of improvement, noting Lance's lengthier windup on throws.
"It's got to get tighter," Baldinger says. "It's got to get tighter or you're going to get the ball knocked out of your hands. Guys are going to read you. You've got to read the defense a little bit better. ... Just tighten up the release. This is one of the focuses of this offseason."
Lance's teammate, Deebo Samuel, also believes this is a big offseason for the quarterback's development, pointing to the importance of his own second offseason. Of course, Samuel had to deal with an injury, which set him back a bit.
"So I feel like the more time that [Lance is] able to put in and get the mechanics, he'll know what it takes to be a pro," Samuel said. "I feel like he'll do a good job in this league."
Longtime scribe Peter King of NBC Sports also recently stressed the importance of Lance having a great offseason. However, he didn't put it all on the quarterback, noting that the 49ers have to make sure to have a solid plan in place for the young player.
"[Lance] needs to have a great offseason, not a good offseason," King said. "He needs to have a great offseason. And so, to me, when I look at what they need to do, I think this needs to be something that Trey Lance is going to have to devote himself and do everything that Kyle Shanahan wants him to do.
"Look, they're forbidden from doing a lot of things because of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, but you voluntarily can do whatever you want. So I think they've got to spend an inordinate amount of time making sure that Trey Lance is ready to go and ready to play at a high level. That would be my No. 1 priority."