Is it Lance for the Niners — or Garoppolo?

Bill Walsh had a concise plan for the care, preparation and advancement of a young quarterback. The rookie year, with exception, he watches from the bench. The second year, he gets into the lineup in situations where he has a chance to succeed. The third year, he starts.

So neat and efficient, and with a guy named Joe Montana, effective. But Montana was a mere third-round pick, and it was a time, the early 1980s, when teams — if not fans — had a degree of patience.

Now they are impatient, especially with high draft picks, who through a lot of maneuvering and draft trades, end up at a place where — such as Trey Lance — they and the franchise are expected to succeed immediately.

Which, if not impossible, is unlikely. Meaning the 49ers early on probably will go with semi-reliable Jimmy Garoppolo, who unlike Lance has been the starter in several NFL games, one of those Super Bowl LIV.

Yes. Garoppolo and the Niners were defeated in that game. No, Niners GM John Lynch and head coach “Cool Kyle” Shanahan, do not perceive Garoppolo as the long-range choice. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have mortgaged so much to get the third pick in the 2021 draft.

But now it’s the short range, which is of immediate importance, and knowing the complexity of the game, and wary of having his rookie getting pummeled physically and mentally, Shanahan surely will go with Garoppolo.

Although he would never say as much. And that’s fine. Or why would we pay attention to what are exhibition games under a different label?

After Sunday’s game against the Chargers in Los Angeles, a 15-10 win, in which Lance was both good and bad—normal for a rookie in only his second game—Shanahan was asked if Garoppolo would be the starter when the NFL schedule began.

“No, I’m not making that announcement,” said the coach with a devilish grin. “Nice try though.”

Quarterback competition, genuine or imagined, is virtually the only thing that keeps training camp more than, well, training camp—players going through drills which only coaches love. “Run that one again, and stay away from the linebacker.”

The athletes get weary of the repetition and sometimes of getting pounded by the same teammates, which is why teams schedule workouts against someone else. 

Do you find it curious that the Chargers and 49ers faced each other in practice and then in a game that was little more than a practice?

I’ve found it curious that many fans want to watch practice, which can be boring except to the skilled eye.

No question Shanahan knows what is happening—or what isn’t. Kyle was the offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons before being hired by the Niners, and Kyle’s father, Mike was offensive coordinator for the Niners under George Seifert, helping win a Super Bowl before becoming head coach at Denver and winning two Super Bowls.

With that background and experience, Shanahan has a good chance of making the right decision on the Niners quarterback—after keeping the rest of us involved and in a bit of suspense.

“Whatever Trey does,” Shanahan said about the kid he wanted in last April’s draft, “the eyes are going to be on him.”

They’ll also be on Shanahan. 

“In a season,” said Norv Turner, the longtime coach, “a good quarterback will win you two games you wouldn’t have won.”

The Niners won a lot of games with Montana and then Steve Young as their quarterbacks. 

Now they need to win with Trey Lance. Or Jimmy Garoppolo.