The 49ers wrapped up their second week of the preseason with a victory over the Chargers at LoFi Stadium.
It took awhile for San Francisco’s offense to get its bearings thanks in part to a couple early turnovers, but a strong defensive effort gave the 49ers a chance to rebound on the other side of the ball late in the first half and into the second half.
Here’s a quick rundown of what we know after the final whistle:
Final score: 49ers 15, Chargers 10
(AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
It wasn’t pretty, but a couple touchdown drives from rookie QB Trey Lance were enough to get the 49ers a 15-10 win. San Francisco struck first with a safety when DE Jordan Willis sacked Chargers QB Easton Stick in the end zone. Lance had touchdown passes to Mohamed Sanu and Travis Benjamin to round out the scoring.
Best performances
Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
RB Wayne Gallman: 15 carries, 72 yards RB JaMycal Hasty: 22 touches, 79 yards QB Trey Lance: 8-14, 102 yards, 2 TDs, INT WR Trent Sherfield: 2 receptions, 50 yards WR Travis Benjamin: 2 receptions, 24 yards, TD DL Kentavius Street: 3 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1.0 sacks DE Jordan Willis: 1.0 sacks, Safety S Jared Mayden: 1 tackle, INT
Injury notes
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DL Maurice Hurst (ankle) and LB Mychal Kendricks (toe) both exited the game early and didn’t return. Hurst was originally questionable but downgraded to out. Kendricks never returned after receiving his “questionable” designation.
Three big things
(AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
1. Trey Lance improves: It still wasn’t perfect for the rookie but he settled in nicely after a 1-5 start to complete seven of his next nine throws. One of those incompletions was a dropped screen pass. The full breadth of his physical tools were on display, including a couple very impressive throws into tight windows. His inexperience as a passer showed up too though with some inaccurate deliveries and a couple of throws that came in a little too hot. Those are all correctible things though. He’s clearly talented enough to be a superstar. 2. D-line dominant: The 49ers’ defensive line spent a lot of time in the Chargers’ offensive backfield. Both QBs Easton Stick and Chase Daniel spent a lot of time under duress, and several run plays got blown up at or before the line of scrimmage. San Francisco tallied five sacks – four by defensive linemen – and 11 tackles for loss – six by defensive linemen. They’ll have one of the NFL’s best defenses if their group is that effective when the regular season starts. 3. Jimmy G’s odd night: Garoppolo was supposed to get a series before giving way to Lance for two series, and then come back in after the rookie got some work. A 15-play opening drive for the 49ers offense wound up changing that plan. That series ended when Garoppolo missed a throw high to WR Brandon Aiyuk. The ball bounced off Aiyuk’s hands and into the arms of a Chargers defensive back. Garoppolo wasn’t very good throwing the ball, and it would’ve made sense for him to get another series. Alas, his evening ended after 15 plays and an interception.
What’s next
(AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
The 49ers head home for their final week of training camp and then a preseason finale against the Las Vegas Raiders at Levi’s Stadium. There’s still plenty to be resolved in the quarterback battle as well, so that’ll be worth watching closely this week.
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