The 49ers set Trey Lance up for failure whether they want to admit it or not

It was Lance’s first touchdown pass since Week 1 of the 2022 preseason and after a close examination of the game film, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan seemingly admitted that the instant knee-jerk reactions on social media ripping Lance for his carelessness may have been a bit overblown.

“It was scary for a lot of it, but I totally saw what he saw (on the play),” Shanahan told reporters on Monday. “The middle third safety cut the low cross and there was a guy going behind him. What I liked is he didn’t react and he saw a hole and tried to rip it. There was some guy coming from the back side that he didn’t see but it wasn’t a gun-shy throw. Those are things you learn from.

"I kind of like seeing him trying to make that play, regardless of the results," the coach continued. "Obviously, we got a little bit lucky and it ended up being a good result. I wouldn’t have been happy if it was a pick, but I can understand what he saw rolling out to the left.”

The stat line for Lance’s 2023 preseason debut wasn’t terrible: 10 completions on 15 attempts, 112 yards passing, one touchdown, zero interceptions, four sacks and a passer rating of 111.

Was his performance flawless? Absolutely not. Were there things he could have done better? 100 percent. However, as fans and national media pundits picked apart every aspect of every play Lance made, it seemed that important context was being left out.

Lance is taking second- and third-team reps during camp and throwing to receivers who likely won’t make the 49ers’ 53-man roster in a few weeks. If that’s the kind of preparation he’s getting, yeah, the results likely won’t be pretty.

Lance is in an impossible situation.

His head coach and GM repeatedly give their unwavering vote of confidence to second-year QB Brock Purdy, who had seven good games last season. That's something Lance never got in his three seasons with the team, even as a former third overall pick.

In an offense tailored to Purdy, Lance is also expected to show he’s made strides in his development despite not taking the majority of first-team reps since training camp last year.

That’s the key takeaway of camp so far. The plays that are called, the blocking schemes that are implemented, the routes each receiver runs and everything in between is designed to function optimally with Purdy at QB, not Lance.

And if that weren’t enough of a challenge, he had to play his first game since breaking his ankle last season with a supporting cast absent the team’s top play-makers (Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle). His top targets were seventh-round rookie Ronnie Bell and 30-year-old journeyman Chris Conley, who’s never had more than 47 catches in a season and hasn’t made a meaningful contribution to a team in nearly four years.

Yes, Lance is a polarizing player. And there are many reasons why he’s critiqued as harshly as he is. But it may be time to start looking at his 49ers tenure through the lens of benevolence instead of culpability.