SANTA CLARA – As Trey Lance remembers it, Brandon Aiyuk used to mean mug him during his rookie year. After spending some time together in San Diego this summer, the two could be seen joking and laughing on the field in between reps Wednesday.
It marked Lance’s first day as undisputed QB1 of the 49ers. Suiting up in his third training camp, Aiyuk served as the de facto No. 1 receiver while Deebo Samuel ran sprints on the sidelines.
So, what was it about that first impression Lance got from Aiyuk last year?
“He said I never used to talk to him and give him dirty looks apparently,” Aiyuk said with a smile. “I don’t know what he’s talking about.”
The duo linked up for a half work/half vacation at a shared house in San Diego this offseason, training for three-day blocks before taking rest days to mimic the rhythm of training camp. They’d work out, run a mean sand hill with some local athletes, then hit spend the rest of the day at the beach and nights by the fire.
“Just talking and really getting to know who he is,” Aiyuk said. “And him getting to know who I am outside of football, because that’s the only time we see each other. Being down there a couple of weeks, working hard, putting in hours and grinding together then hanging out, just chilling afterwards, it’s a great thing.”
On Thursday, Aiyuk pulled down a nice leaping catch in traffic from Lance during a team drill, one of the few times they connected during the day. The 22-year-old Lance and the 24-year-old Aiyuk could be playing pitch-and-catch for years to come.
“As the quarterback, we gotta be connected on the field and off it,” Aiyuk said.
Lance also deked out the defense badly during a zone-read option, as second-year running back Elijah Mitchell lined up with the first-team offense Wednesday. Overall, he showed the athleticism and strong arm that helped him earn the trust of the organization.
Aside from his ability to stretch the field horizontally with his legs, Lance’s intrigue also centers around his potential to stretch the field vertically with his arm. In his limited amount of action last year – Lance logged six meaningful quarters of action – the young gunslinger showed he wasn’t shy to take a shot downfield.
Aiyuk said he’s been impressed with the way Lance’s deep ball has developed.
“He extends the field,” Aiyuk said. “He makes those safeties back up, get on their pedal fast. I think that’s great because it will give us all that underneath stuff that we love to throw as well.”
Perhaps that’s a bit of fresh air for 49ers Faithful, who have become accustomed to conservatives passes and checkdowns from Jimmy Garoppolo over the past four seasons. Speaking of Jimmy G, he didn’t take part in practice on Tuesday, but was spotted working in the weight room.
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The team excused veteran All-Pro tackle Trent Williams for a family matter, while others like tackle Mike McGlinchey, defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw and linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair were eased into action as they recalibrate from surgeries.
All eyes were on Lance, though, who reportedly went 9-of-11 on the day by unofficial counts. Al-Shaair said he can notice that Lance is making quicker decisions under center.
“100 percent,” Al-Shaair said. “His overall processing’s faster. … You can tell he’s way more comfortable.”
It’s only Day 1 of training camp. Of course, none of Lance’s teammates are going to come out and say he hasn’t shown improvement after his first NFL offseason. But the show is Lance’s now and he’s getting rave reviews from his teammates.
“Trey throws a great ball,” said cornerback Emmanuel Moseley, who nearly picked off Lance during team drills. “The ball comes hard.”
