49ers Rookie Trey Lance Lauded by Texans After Second Career Start

The San Francisco 49ers improved to 9-7 on Sunday with an important 23-7 win over the Houston Texans that featured a whole lot of Trey Lance.

The rookie quarterback out of North Dakota State was called upon to start in Week 17 after regular starter Jimmy Garoppolo sprained a UCL in his thumb. In his second career start, Lance completed 16 of 23 passes for 249 yards with two second-half touchdowns.

His day included some misses and an early interception that put the Texans in position to take control of the game, but the 49ers defense kept Houston to seven points and just 222 total yards. When Lance got his opportunity to redeem himself in the second half, he delivered.

His competitors on Sunday thought as much. In the post-game press conference, two Texans players and head coach David Culley offered compliments for Lance.

Jordan Jenkins, who pulled Lance down for a sack on Sunday, was impressed by his athleticism and physicality.

“He is a fast guy,” Jenkins said per Sports Illustrated. “He is a little taller and heavier than I thought when we were taking him down, but he is not afraid to take a hit. He is not afraid to fight for that extra effort. He had some good progress out there today.”

Complementing his passing performance, Lance ran the ball eight times for 31 yards. There’s no question that one of the rookie’s biggest tools in his early NFL days is the ability to shed tacklers and pick up yards on the ground.

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Texans Corner Picks Off Lance, Then Praises Him

As mentioned above, Lance didn’t have a perfect day and it certainly didn’t start well. His first-half interception was arguably his worst throw of the game.

Lance tried to fit in a throw in triple coverage, but it wasn’t anywhere close to tight end George Kittle. Desmond King II was in good position for the Texans, and the corner made the play.

However, that moment didn’t take away from King’s reaction to Lance, which was positive. In fact, King thinks the primary takeaway from the 49ers QB’s second-ever start was his response.

“In the second half he showed some resiliency coming back in the second half and taking care of the ball and making the right choices and decisions out there at quarterback. He has really great potential and just looking forward to what he has coming for the next years.”

Texans HC Sounds Off on Rookie QB

For Culley, he didn’t shy away from calling Lance’s early interception a “gift” and he also didn’t shy from saying the Texans didn’t make the most of that opportunity.

“He played well enough for them to win today,” Culley said. “He gave us a chance by giving us that one pick. The thing about him is that he’s very mobile and keeps plays alive. He ended up making some throws outside the pocket that kept some drives alive. He played well today.”

It’s measured, but fair praise from the Houston head coach. Like his players, he recognizes that his athleticism is of a special caliber, and that his play after the interception is what you want to see out of a developing rookie.