People around the 49ers have to be happy with what they saw from Lance.
He showed good pocket awareness, escapability via his legs, and accuracy and power in his arm in the 11 snaps he played.
Lance had a stat line that said he wasn't perfect. You can't expect a guy who's only thrown 389 career passes to be polished.
Lance was 5-5 for 92 yards and a touchdown with a perfect passer rating. The numbers make him look a little more impressive than he was, but he looked comfortable and confident, and brought a new element to the 49ers offense that has to have their coaches, players, and fans drooling.
Lance stepped up into the pocket and threw a deep ball to Danny Gray.
The ball flew through the air and hit the pick square in the chest. Gray caught it in stride and ran the rest of the way for a 76 yard touchdown.
During the Jimmy Garoppolo era, this type of play was rare.
The 49ers have had four such completions in the last year that traveled through the air for 30 or more yards.
Garoppolo had at least one attempt. Lance has thrown 3 times.
The 49ers are loaded at the skill positions with Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, and George Kittle.
They brought in Gray who ran a 4.33 40-yard dash, and Ray-Ray McCloud III, who ran a 4.28 40-yard dash.
The 49ers were aware that Lance would add a new element to their offense.
McCloud caught a 39-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the 49ers' first non-Lance series.
The 49ers scored a lot of points in the Super Bowl. They showed flashes in the future. This dominance was not due to Garoppolo's ability to throw the football. The run game is what made it happen. Kyle is fond of using the ground and pound style.
The offense didn't have anything. It didn't have the big play potential. It wasn't hitting the down field shots.
Garoppolo couldn't throw a consistently deep ball. No matter how many times the 49ers moved the chains via the run, opposing teams were not concerned about being beaten deep. This was preventing the offense from getting going.
Lance is able to change that.
Despite the new quarterback, I wouldn't be surprised to see a lot of the same scheme. The 49ers will keep running the ball. The 49ers won't need Lance to do a lot early on because of Trent Williams and their dominant offensive line.
Lance will be able to use his legs in a new way. The 49ers don't need to run a four-out Patrick Mahomes-style offense.
When the 49ers are moving the ball down the field, with the help of the offensive line, he will be able to make a decision.
He will be able to use a play-action to find a speedster 40 yards down the field, instead of throwing a five-yard pass to his tight ends. Lance has a lot of exciting players at his disposal.
Lance has the ability to make game-changing plays because of it.
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