49ers’ Kyle Shanahan discusses why Trey Lance was not named a captain

The San Francisco 49ers revealed their six captains for the 2022 NFL season on Wednesday, and for the first time in three seasons, the team’s starting quarterback did not make the cut. 

Trey Lance, preparing for his first season as the starter in San Francisco, was not selected by the players as a team captain. 

Lance downplayed the news, saying that while being a captain is his goal, the six selected captains deserved the honor. 

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“Obviously, that’s a goal of mine,” Lance said Wednesday, “but I don’t think you can look at any six of those guys and be like, ‘That guy’s a bozo.’ Because those guys have played football at a very, very high level. So yeah, the situations are different.

“I voted for every single one of those guys, so I think each and every one of them deserves it. But yeah, it’s definitely a goal of mine moving forward. But those guys have all proved it, and that’s what this league is all about.”

Arik Armstead, Fred Warner, George Kittle, Trent Williams, Jimmy Ward and Nick Bosa are the six captains for the 2022 season. 

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The team’s veterans have praised Lance’s leadership throughout training camp and the preseason, while head coach Kyle Shanahan said Lance’s absence from the captain’s list had a lot to do with his lack of experience. 

“I don’t look into it that much, he was seventh in the voting. I just didn’t want to put seven on there,” Shanahan revealed to reporters on Wednesday, according to NBC Sports. “Deebo [Samuel] was eight — that’s why I mentioned his name on accident. We just wanted to go with six. They don’t allow eight to the coin toss, I don’t believe. 

“It’s also his first year of starting for us. There’s not many rookies who end up being the captains. I know this is his second year, but he’s a rookie for us in terms of this is his first time being our starting quarterback.”

Lance is taking over for Jimmy Garoppolo, who led the 49ers to the NFC Championship Game last season. Garoppolo, who is 31-15 in his career in San Francisco, recently agreed to restructure his contract to remain with the 49ers. 

Lance has spoken highly of Garoppolo, telling reporters that it was “good to have him back in the building” following news of the restructured deal. 

San Francisco is set to open the season Sunday on the road against the Chicago Bears.