The San Francisco 49ers have a solid collection of weapons on offense, so they easily could just put Trey Lance in the game manager role right now.
Vernon Davis wants to see no such thing.
Questions have surrounded Lance pretty much since he broke into the NFL, but especially since the Niners reneged on their plan to get rid of Jimmy Garoppolo. It’s unclear why the 49ers changed course, fueling speculation that maybe Lance isn’t ready.
Barring a huge surprise, Lance will be under center Week 1 against the Chicago Bears. Instead of playing things safe, the former 49ers tight end wants to see Lance play freely right away.
“Trey Lance should go out and be the best football player he can possibly be,” Davis said Tuesday on CBS Sports Radio's "The Zach Gelb Show". “Don’t think about it, make a decision and go with it. Trust your gut and do what you’ve done, do the things that got you here. That’s what you tell him.
"You can’t make him put his back up against the wall and just tell him to play safe. That’s not the way to go. You make plays, you be the super human being you’ve always been. That’s what I’m telling Trey Lance if I’m his coach.”
Garoppolo didn’t need to be spectacular because of all the options around him, but placing any sort of cap on Lance’s potential right away by putting him in too safe of a situation is obviously counterproductive.
It’s an interesting tightrope to walk for the 49ers. Ultimately, playing things safe would be counterproductive for both parties. Lance won't grow and the 49ers won't know what they have in him unless the training wheels are off, so now is the time to let him just go out there and play.
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