SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Trey Lance drew Kyle Shanahan’s official nod to debut as the 49ers’ starting quarterback Sunday, but only after Jimmy Garoppolo’s calf injury kept him out of practice all week, including Friday’s light session.
“I’m pumped to see him play,” Shanahan said.
The undefeated Arizona Cardinals (4-0) and State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., will serve as the launching pad for Lance’s much-anticipated starting tenure, one that officially isn’t promised beyond this game.
“Our starting quarterback’s hurt. If he would have been 100 percent, we would have gone with him,” Shanahan said.
Garoppolo was ruled out, and tight end George Kittle is doubtful because of his own calf injury that kept him out of practice, too.
Lance, for the first time since arriving as the No. 3 overall draft pick, took his most extensive first-team reps in practice this week. His backup will be Nate Sudfeld, who will be elevated from the practice squad and earned scout-team player-of-the week recognition.
Surely, Shanahan schemed a game plan around Lance’s skillset that includes an ability to strike deeper than Garoppolo and run with the ball on designed zone-read plays or scrambles, all while taking into account that Lance hasn’t shown great accuracy or Garoppolo’s veteran savvy in move-the-ball drives.
With J.J. Watt and Chandler Jones crashing in from the edges, Lance has the ability to elude them and other defenders better than a hobbled Garoppolo, who’s previously missed 23 starts since 2018 because of injury.
Lance completed half his passes (9 of 18) for 157 yards and two touchdowns in second-half relief of Garoppolo Sunday, when the 49ers lost their second straight home game and fell, 28-21, to Seattle.
Lance also ran for 41 yards last game, and that rushing asset is what the 49ers could count on to hog the ball and stymie the Cardinals, who lead the NFL by averaging 35 points and 440.5 yards per game.
Before Lance made his pro debut in the Aug. 14 preseason game against Kansas City, Shanahan noted he was “excited to see him play like everyone else is. It’s fun to watch quarterbacks go out there for the first time and stuff.”
Shanahan then added he wasn’t nervous and he didn’t want Lance to be, that he should “just calm down and just do your job like you try to do out here every day, because that’s what quarterback is going to be every single day of your life until you’re done playing.”
Lance, you may recall, threw an 80-yard, first-quarter touchdown in that preseason opener to Trent Sherfield. He also threw a touchdown to Sherfield in the regular-season opener, on Lance’s only pass prior to this past Sunday’s relief appearance.
“He’s going to be really, really good. His ceiling is very, very high. You guys got a glimpse of that last week,” Sherfield told this news organization Thursday. “You’ve seen how he can play, how he can extend plays, how he can run, how he can throw.
“He’s going to have to take some time to learn, just like everyone does in this league. I do truly believe his ceiling is very, very high, because he takes it serious.”
Defensive linemen Samson Ebukam (hamstring) and Javon Kinlaw (knee) are questionable.
