Nevius: 49ers light on star power, heavy on confidence in preseason opener

When the 49ers kicked off for Friday night’s exhibition against the Packers, their fans were anxious to see what the team might look like in 2022.

Oh well, maybe they will see it in the next game.

The Press Democrat’s Inside the 49ers blog

In this one, coach Mike Shanahan gave hall passes to virtually every cornerstone player on the roster.

Among those roaming the sideline in hoodies and ball caps were (deep breath):

Team spirit animal George Kittle; all-everything edge rusher Nick Bosa; training camp highlight-reel creator Brandon Aiyuk; defensive bellcow Fred Warner; tackle Trent (maybe the best player in football) Williams; tone-setting Jimmie Ward; Deebo (Why did I ask to be traded again?) Samuel; six-time Pro Bowler Kyle Juszczyk; both presumed starting CBs, Emmanuel Mosley and prized offseason acquisition Charvarius Ward;

... and Jimmy Garoppolo.

The surmise from here is simple. The 49ers were saying, “We know who these guys are. We know they can play. The only thing that can screw this up is somebody getting hurt.”

It’s the move of a confident team. One that thinks it has the pieces to contend.

As long as the quarterback holds up.

The lack of star power put even more attention on second-year heir apparent Trey Lance. It’s already been quite a trip.

As the week of drills ended, it was hard to remember if yesterday was his “worst practice of the camp” or “the best he’s looked all year.” Because they seemed to switch back and forth every other day.

Game-wise, against the Packers, Lance was perfectly fine.

He ran, he slid, he rolled out and he threw deep. He completed more passes than he didn’t — four of five. Granted, two of them were Shanahan scheme classics — the naked QB rollout and the stand-and-fire zip to the outside. Layups, really.

And you have to worry a little when even team-boosting TV color commentator Tim Ryan asks, “Is he accurate enough to make those throws?”

But he also threw a sweet, 76-yard TD ball to Danny Gray — with a little pressure in his face. No quibbles there.

He fired a couple of sideline tosses high, at which point Twitter lit up with every 49ers writer noting, “That’s been a problem in training camp, too.”

But most encouragingly, he looked engaged and energized. He looked comfortable with the team. And his gesture, when he ran half the length of the field to pick up Danny Gray’s first touchdown ball to give to him, was classy. That’s how you win friends and influence people.

However ...

Like Liam Neeson in “Taken,” professional quarterbacks earn their money with “a very particular set of skills.”

It happens at the end of games, with the clock ticking and the sticks needing to be moved. He must make the nervy, risky throws to well-covered receivers. He must stay cool and make the right split-second decisions.

If Lance can do that, Shanahan is onto something.

Oddly, once Lance joined the sideline gang, the rest of the game was pretty entertaining.

The running back committee seems to be back in session. Troy Sermon got some opportunities but didn’t really splash (six carries, 11 yards). Tyrion Davis-Price led all rushers with 10 carries for 36 yards. JaMycal Hasty skittered for the same yardage, but did it in only five carries.

Ray-Ray McCloud III scored the easiest touchdown you’ll see, when his cutback route left the defender on his knees and Nate Sudfeld found him in the end zone in the first play of the second quarter. McCloud handled punt returns but also fumbled.

As everyone is saying, Samuel Womack III knows what he’s doing. He not only had two interceptions, he had two passes “defensed.”

“We felt him out there with those picks and stuff,” Shanahan said on a Saturday conference call. “I thought he did a real good job in coverage, too. His pick over the middle was the best coverage that he had.”

Perhaps the most fascinating man in the 49ers’ world is fireplug guard Jason Poe. He packs 300 pounds on a 6-1 frame and kind of bobs along at shoulder-pad level to the rest of the O-line.

But he’s quick. He was seen chipping the D-lineman, then bouncing up to the next level to engage the linebacker. Odd how often a hole opens up where he’s blocking.

Special teams will be a focus all this year. The team fired special teams coach Richard Hightower in the offseason, so they clearly weren’t happy.

And they couldn’t have been happy with the Packers’ kickoff in the first quarter, when Green Bay’s Amari Rodgers blew open a 50-yard return. Rodgers had beaten everyone down the sideline with only 39-year-old kicker Robbie Gould in his way.

Gould was the good soldier, throwing a shoulder into Rodgers and getting him out of bounds, but you have to think everyone winced a little to see their All-Pro kicker take a shot like that.

You have to question the wisdom of having Gould kick off, which runs the risk of him taking more big hits. “We asked Robbie to take on that challenge last year, and he did a really good job with it,” Shanahan said.

OK, but if he gets hurt ...

But then, as the 49ers demonstrated Friday night, that’s what these games are for. This is essentially an established roster. These games aren’t for them. They are for the other guys. The ones who are trying to make a splash and make the team.

To be continued.

Contact C.W. Nevius at cw.nevius@pressdemocrat.com. Twitter: @cwnevius