While the national media has done its best to question second-year quarterback Trey Lance, his San Francisco 49ers teammates have consistently expressed confidence in the 22-year-old. However, they know Lance is inexperienced and will likely go through growing pains. That is to be expected.
Daniel Brunskill has been impressed with his new starting quarterback's progress this offseason. More specifically, the offensive lineman has been impressed with Lance's work ethic, which will go a long way in his development.
"I think Trey's got tremendous talent," Brunskill told Brad Graham of TheSFNiners on Thursday. "And what I love about him is he goes in every day, and he puts in a lot of effort. And he works his butt off to get going. So I love that Trey's got that mentality, like, 'I want to be here. I want to be that guy. And I want to be a great player and go win a Super Bowl.' He's got that mentality of being perfect.
"I remember this offseason, after practice, he would be out there throwing with [Brandon Aiyuk], like, 'I just didn't get this route in practice right.' He went out and threw it, the same route, over and over and over and over and over again until he got it down. He's got that mentality, which you love to have in a young guy."
Lance has taken most of the offseason practice reps at quarterback, with Jimmy Garoppolo recovering from the shoulder surgery he underwent in early March. Of course, that may have been the case even if Garoppolo had been healthy. The 49ers have been looking to trade the veteran quarterback, officially ushering in the Trey Lance era.
Lance started just two games last season—a Week 5 loss against the Arizona Cardinals and a Week 17 win over the Houston Texans. It wasn't a lot of in-game experience, so the former No. 3 overall pick is doing everything he can to ensure he's as prepared as possible when the 49ers take the field against the Chicago Bears in Week 1.
"He's putting in the effort, he's putting in the work, and so, I'm excited for him," Brunskill continued. "And even last year, the games he played, you go watch the [Arizona] game—that was his first start—how he progressed in that one. And then into the Texans game, and how he progressed in that. So you can see him kind of coming along.
"As much experience as we can possibly get him, that's going to be the best thing for him, and I'm excited to see how he plays. He's a good player. He puts in the work. Not everything is going to be perfect. You're not going to be the best player in the world right off the bat. ... He's going to go out there and do the best he can to be perfect, and you're never going to [accomplish] that, but the amount of work he puts in, that excites you. That gets you to where you want to be because he's putting in the work to make sure he gets it right."
