News & Info/Headlines

Kyle Shanahan on Tuesday removed all doubt about what’s going on under center in San Francisco. In case his appearance on the TK Show podcast Monday wasn’t convincing enough, he stated as plainly as possible in his Tuesday press conference that Trey Lance is the team’s starter going into camp.

“We have moved on to Trey,” Shanahan said. “We’re starting camp out this way. We think Jimmy would’ve been traded if the surgery didn’t happen, and it did, and he needed to do it so there’s no ill-will there at all.”

He later reiterated the same sentiment about the transition to a new signal caller.

“This is Trey’s team,” Shanahan said. “That’s nothing against Jimmy. We made that decision a year ago.”

While Garoppolo is still technically on the roster and reported for camp to take his physical, the 49ers don’t intend on having the QB practice for them. Once he’s healthy the club will be able to move forward with either a trade or release.

This is mostly what we’ve inferred based on the available information throughout the offseason. Now we have the head coach stating it as plain as possible.

The 49ers belong to Lance, and a new era is underway in San Francisco.

Lance is raw and talented, with a big arm and elusive running ability.

But he needed to work on fundamentals this offseason to help lead a playoff roster. Did he get there?

Lance warmed up in both of his starts as a rookie last season, playing better in the second halves. He ran well and hit more big plays than Garoppolo. The perception is that Lance struggled as a rookie, but NFL.com's Gregg Rosenthal contends the numbers paint a more nuanced story.

Still, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported in February that Lance "was probably further behind than people realized, greener than people realize, and is going to need more work than people realize, and [the 49ers] have a roster that can win now."

Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area agreed, suggested he's not sure "anybody knows" if Lance, the 2021 No.3-overall pick, is ready to take over as the starting quarterback of the team in 2022.

That may well be the case, but Shanahan has plenty of confidence in Lance and that's what matters. Fantasy managers shouldn't ignore that -- even though it would be wise to back him up with a more proven asset heading into the season. ...

Meanwhile, Deebo Samuel reported for San Francisco 49ers training camp. Now the hope is a long-term deal can be struck.

General manager John Lynch said Tuesday that he's optimistic an extension can get done soon.

"We've had really productive and substantive talks," Lynch said. "I don't want to get everyone all excited that something is imminent, because we're not there yet. But really hopeful that in the near future, we'll be able to announce something that is exciting for everyone involved. Deebo is here today, and we're excited about moving forward with him as part of this team."

The question is whether Samuel will participate in any practice sessions before a new deal gets done. While the new CBA has ended most traditional holdouts, hold-ins (where a player reports and attends meetings but doesn't practice) are more common.

A second-round pick in 2019, the wideout enters the final year of his rookie deal set to earn $3.936 million in base salary.

Samuel's future with the club has hovered over the franchise all offseason. The star wideout requested a trade back in April, but the 49ers didn't move him ahead of the 2022 NFL Draft.

While the contract situation has lingered -- as a boatload of other receivers have gotten paid this offseason -- other questions have also percolated, including Samuel's usage in the offense. There have been discussions about Deebo not wanting to be used out of the backfield as much moving forward to save his body from constant beatings.

Shanahan said Tuesday that he had a "real good discussion" with Samuel about his usage in the offense.

"We're on the same page with it," Shanahan said.

Now Samuel and the Niners just need to get on the same page on contract talks.

Stay tuned. ... We'll be watching both the quarterback and receiver as the season draws nearer.