49ers news: Trey Lance prompts criticism, Jake Moody unfazed by missed kicks

Not a lot went right for the 49ers in preseason action against the Raiders, including Trey Lance having not so great an outing.

The San Francisco 49ers managed just seven points during their 34-7 preseason flop on the road against the Las Vegas Raiders, and even those seven points shouldn't have been.

After all, quarterback Trey Lance wasn't intending to hit tight end Ross Dwelley.

Instead, after a Raiders defender dropped and bobbled a would-be interception in the end zone, Dwelley just happened to be there to make the catch.

It was a weird play, one where Lance was far luckier than good:

Lance finished the day going 10-of-15 for 112 yards and a passer rating of 111.0. But he also took four sacks, two of which were clearly on him and at instances when he should have delivered the ball sooner.

Despite some promising moments where fans got to see why the Niners moved up to No. 3 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft to select him, the eye test still revealed a Lance that was raw and in desperate need of more field reps.

Reps San Francisco might no longer have the time to give him, and that's creating all kinds of speculation that Lance isn't and will never be "the guy" for the 49ers.

NFL world reacts to Trey Lance's performance vs. Raiders

No ally of Lance, FS1's Colin Cowherd remarked, "I think I've seen enough. This isn't it. He's not as accurate as Brock Purdy. He's not as talented as Sam Darnold."

Purdy, who sat out the game, is clearly entrenched as San Francisco's starter going forward. But that's not new news. We knew that way back earlier this offseason when general manager John Lynch effectively confirmed it.

Instead, Lance was to compete with Darnold for the No. 2 spot on the quarterbacking depth chart. And while Darnold hasn't had much success at the pro level during his time with the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers, he does have immense amounts of something Lance doesn't have.

Experience.

Considering the 49ers knew this when they drafted Lance, sending their own first-rounder in 2021, plus two additional first-round picks and a third-round pick to move up to No. 3 overall, it makes sense why ESPN's Marcus Spears felt that trade would be one of the worst ones in recent NFL history:

On ESPN's Get Up, former quarterback Dan Orlovsky (h/t 49ers Webzone) also criticized Lance by saying:

""I don't think Trey Lance can play in Kyle Shannon's offense. I just—I've seen enough. One, he doesn't have enough reps playing football. That's a reality.""

Lance's future is still undecided, although the Niners will have to wear some criticism for not getting the most out of their investment.

Having made it to two consecutive NFC Championship games, though, it's probably easier to look back at that trade-up and not be quite as critical.

Still, Lance doing anything but succeeding with San Francisco is going to wind up being a bitter disappointment.

Jake Moody having the blues? 49ers kicker isn't fazed by missed field goals

The 49ers also received plenty of criticism for using a third-round pick in this year's draft to take a kicker, Michigan's Jake Moody, selected at No. 99 overall.

The first specialist off the board, Moody now enters an arena where he'll be under pressure to live up to that expectation. And while he made all kinds of lengthy kicks, both at the collegiate level and during training camp, the first go at it during an NFL game wasn't particularly great.

First, he missed from 40 yards out just before halftime against Vegas. Then, in the second half, he pushed a 58-yard try wide right by a large margin.

"I was hoping we had one more just so I kind of prove that those were flukes, and that's not normal, I guess," Moody explained after the game. "I wanted one more just to kind of feel better, but I guess I'll just have to wait until next week."

Shanahan echoed similar sentiments after the game, too.

San Francisco's third-round rookie is still too far away from being labeled a complete bust, but it is safe to say he's not off on the right track just yet.

If anything, though, he missed those kicks in a preseason setting. Not a regular-season one.

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