Football is back, and former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance was the talk of the NFL's first preseason game as the Los Angeles Chargers and Detroit Lions took part in this year's Hall of Fame Game.
Lance got the start for the Chargers and put on a performance that was quite refreshing to watch, regardless of which fandom you come from. Lance finished the night going 13-of-20 for 120 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He also went without a turnover and was sacked only once.
His command of the offense and calm confidence was hard to ignore. Lance looked comfortable and assertive. Despite this being just a preseason game, Lance finally showed fans what many have been waiting a long time to see. At the same time, he and head coach Jim Harbaugh shed light on something that was missing during Lance's tenure under Kyle Shanahan.
Kyle Shanahan couldn't give Trey Lance the type of coaching he needed with the 49ers
At times, the camera would pan to Harbaugh on the sideline and fans were able to see the type of encouragement Lance was getting from his head coach. The bond was unlike anything we ever saw between Shanahan and Lance in San Francisco, and it's not going out on a limb to say that Shanahan was never the coach Lance needed.
Sure enough, it was Harbaugh all along. Although it was only one preseason game, it showed.
Even former NFL cornerback Richard Sherman once went so far as to comment on Shanahan not being the feel-good type and instead acting the same way toward all of his players, rather than catering his style to that of each individual player.
"Kyle is different. He's one size fits all," Sherman told the 49ers website a few years ago.
While there is no discounting Shanahan's successes as a head coach, one thing cannot be denied: he isn't Harbaugh. Even 49ers fans will remember Harbaugh's ability to lift up his players by motivating, showing genuine affection towards them and trying to get the best out of each individual any way he can.
This doesn't make Shanahan a bad coach. No, not at all. Shanahan is a fantastic football mind and a successful coach in this league. However, he just wasn't going to be the guy to get the most out of Lance. That was always apparent.
There are some Niners fans who would even go so far as to say Shanahan cast Lance aside rather than investing more into the young quarterback, and I suppose I could understand that sentiment if those folks were higher on Lance than others.
For Niners fans who still might have an affinity for Lance, this performance was fun. It was endearing. Hopefully, for Lance's sake, this is only the beginning of a long career in this league, in one fashion or another.