SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The first half of the season has been a bit of a roller coaster for the San Francisco 49ers as they try to build on last season's trip to the NFC title game.
They have endured the lows of a season-ending ankle injury to quarterback Trey Lance in Week 2, a blowout defeat to Kansas City and lackadaisical losses to teams like Chicago, Atlanta and Denver.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers have acquired star running back Christian McCaffrey from the Carolina Panthers for a haul of draft picks.
The Panthers on Thursday night announced the deal that sends McCaffrey back to the Bay Area where he starred in college at Stanford.
The NFL’s quarterback carousel may start spinning a bit faster.
Mac Jones, Tua Tagovailoa and Josh Allen got banged up Sunday. Justin Herbert and Jameis Winston played hurt. Already, Dak Prescott and Trey Lance have gone down.
DENVER (AP) — At first, the San Francisco 49ers were actually relieved that Jimmy Garoppolo stepped out of his own end zone for a safety.
It negated Bradley Chubb's go-ahead pick-6 and left the Niners clinging to a 7-5 lead over the Broncos in the third quarter Sunday night.
SAN FRANCISCO (1-1) at DENVER (1-1)
Sunday, 8:20 p.m. EDT, NBC
OPENING LINE: 49ers by 1, according to FanDuel SportsBook.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers know painfully well from first-hand experience how an injury to the starting quarterback can derail an entire season.
The Niners never recovered from early season injuries that sidelined Jimmy Garoppolo in 2018 and 2020.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Trey Lance underwent season-ending surgery on his broken right ankle Monday, leaving the San Francisco 49ers to go ahead with the rest of the 2022 season with former starter Jimmy Garoppolo back in the helm.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance will miss the rest of the season after breaking his right ankle Sunday.
Lance went down after running the ball on the second drive of a 27-7 win over the Seattle Seahawks.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — After the shock of losing starting quarterback Trey Lance to a season-ending injury wore off, the San Francisco 49ers looked awfully familiar with Jimmy Garoppolo back at quarterback.
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — As the final seconds ticked off the clock, Arizona's players sprinted down the field celebrating, knowing that a win over giant-slayer North Dakota State was no small feat.
Six straight Football Bowl Subdivision teams had fallen to the Bison.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The offseason story for the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers focused on the change at quarterback.
One week into the season, the transition seems to be going a little bit smoother in Seattle than in San Francisco.
CHICAGO (AP) — Justin Fields rolled to his left with two defenders closing in on him. As his quarterback scrambled one way, Dante Pettis broke toward the opposite side.
CHICAGO (AP) — Trey Lance got the keys to San Francisco's offense in July. When it comes to driving in the rain, well, that still needs some work.
With Jimmy Garoppolo watching from the sideline, Lance and San Francisco were shut down by the Chicago Bears in a 19-10 loss on Sunday.
CHICAGO (AP) — San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle is inactive for Sunday's game at the Chicago Bears because of a groin injury.
Kittle got hurt during a light practice on Monday. He was listed as questionable on Saturday's injury report.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco 49ers star tight end George Kittle missed his second straight practice with a groin injury, leaving his status for the season opener against the Chicago Bears in doubt.
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers advanced to the NFC championship game last season, and they believe they have the playmakers to make another big playoff run.
The Chicago Bears are starting over with a new general manager and coach.
SAN FRANCISCO (12-8) at CHICAGO (6-11)
Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, Fox
OPENING LINE: 49ers by 6½, according to FanDuel SportsBook.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Kyle Shanahan knows what the talk will be around the San Francisco 49ers if quarterback Trey Lance struggles in his first season as the starter with Jimmy Garoppolo waiting on the bench.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Before the news about Jimmy Garoppolo staying in San Francisco as the backup quarterback became public last week, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan gathered a group of his team leaders in his office to explain the situation.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Jimmy Garoppolo moved over one field, rejoined his San Francisco 49ers teammates at practice for the first time since last season and was firing off passes the same way he always has.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The margin between the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams and rival San Francisco 49ers couldn't have been much smaller last season.
A dropped interception, a failed short-yardage attempt and a well-executed game-winning drive was the difference in sending the Rams to the title game and the Niners home to wallow all offseason at their missed opportunity.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Jimmy Garoppolo is staying in San Francisco after agreeing to a reduced contract to be the backup to Trey Lance on the 49ers.
A person familiar with the deal said on condition of anonymity Monday that the sides are finalizing a deal to reduce Garoppolo's $24.2 million base salary for 2022.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers still face the same two major questions at the end of the exhibition season as they did at the start of training camp.
Now the Niners will have to wait until the start of the regular season for answers on whether untested quarterback Trey Lance is ready to take over the offense and whether the offensive line will be dependable enough to give Lance a chance at success.
HOUSTON (AP) — Houston Texans coach Lovie Smith wanted Davis Mills to come out of the halftime locker room and play one more series, with the hope that the second-year quarterback would have some success and end his preseason on a high note.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The defense looks dominant, the offensive line is anchored by the best left tackle in the game and the offense features several players with game-breaking ability.
All of the pieces are in place for the San Francisco 49ers to build on last season's run to the NFC title game as long as untested quarterback Trey Lance is up to the job.
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (12-8)
NEW FACES: CB Charvarius Ward, DE Drake Jackson, DE Kerry Hyder, WR Ray-Ray McCloud, WR Danny Gray, OL Spence Burford, CB Samuel Womack, DL Kemoko Turay, DL Hassan Ridgeway, LB Oren Burks, S George Odum, TE Tyler Kroft.
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A week of joint practices in Minnesota allowed the Vikings and San Francisco 49ers to evaluate their starters in a controlled environment.
Their preseason game Saturday night was all about the backups.
EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — The buses bound for the Twin Cities left southwestern Minnesota at 6:30 a.m. sharp, carrying the biggest Trey Lance fans that San Francisco's young quarterback will ever meet.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Danny Gray's big-play touchdown catch from Trey Lance was the highlight from San Francisco's exhibition opener, though it was the performance of another rookie that could prove even more important to the 49ers.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Trey Lance flashed his big arm in a brief preseason stint for San Francisco with a 76-yard touchdown pass to speedy rookie Danny Gray that helped the 49ers beat the Green Bay Packers 28-21 on Friday night.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The performance didn't come close to matching the hype for the 2021 quarterback class.
With QBs going 1-2-3 for third time ever in the common draft era and five going off the board in the first round for the fourth time, expectations were high for Trevor Lawrence and Co.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The person perhaps most unfazed by San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan's pre-training camp proclamation that the 49ers were now Trey Lance's team was Lance himself.
While some people outside the organization may have wondered if the Niners were ready to turn a contender over to an untested, second-year quarterback, Lance had been operating all offseason as the starter.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Jimmy Garoppolo got his throwing done early and then didn't take part in the first practice of training camp for the San Francisco 49ers as the team hopes to find a trade partner for the former starter.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Jimmy Garoppolo reported to training camp for the San Francisco 49ers after spending the offseason away rehabilitating his injured shoulder.
But the message from coach Kyle Shanahan about Garoppolo's future and the future of the 49ers was clear: “This is Trey's team."
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (12-8)
CAMP SITE: Santa Clara, California
LAST YEAR: The Niners bounced back from an injury-plagued 2020 season to get back into the playoffs and make it all the way to the NFC title game before falling to the eventual champion Rams.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Trey Lance dropped back on successive plays and launched deep strikes to Ray-Ray McCloud and Jordan Matthews that showed off an element the San Francisco 49ers hope to add to their offense this season.
All-Pro receiver Deebo Samuel ended his offseason holdout by reporting for the first day of mandatory minicamp for the San Francisco 49ers.
Samuel had skipped the voluntary portion of the offseason after telling ESPN in April that he wanted to be traded but showed up Tuesday for the start of the three-day minicamp.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Trey Lance took the practice field this week for the San Francisco 49ers in a far different state than his rookie campaign.
The nagging finger injury that limited him all last season has healed, his knowledge of the offense has grown and he has emerged as a leader now that he is set to take over for Jimmy Garoppolo as starting quarterback in San Francisco.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco rookie receiver Danny Gray found the ideal workout partner before the draft to prepare him to play with the 49ers' strong-armed quarterback, Trey Lance.
It just happened to be a former 49ers quarterback known for his his ability to throw with velocity.
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. (AP) — It seemed so much easier for Atlanta Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot to plan for the NFL draft only one year ago.
Days before the 2021 NFL draft, his first with the Falcons, Fontenot already knew he’d be taking tight end Kyle Pitts with the No.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers have helped dictate the first round of the draft in five years under general manager John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan with top 10 picks four times and multiple first-rounders twice.
61. SAN FRANCISCO (12-8)
LAST SEASON: The Niners made it all the way to the NFC title game before falling to the eventual Super Bowl champion Rams. WR Deebo Samuel emerged as one of the top playmakers as both a runner and receiver to lead the offense, while a healthy season from edge rusher Nick Bosa helped the defense.
Jimmy Garoppolo expects his shoulder to be ready for training camp — wherever that may be.
Garoppolo told the AP Pro Football Podcast on Thursday that his rehab is going well and it’s helping him deal with uncertainty surrounding his future with the San Francisco 49ers.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers may need to rethink their plan for Jimmy Garoppolo now that the quarterback has had surgery on his throwing shoulder.
General manager John Lynch said Wednesday at the NFL's annual scouting combine that Garoppolo initially tried to avoid surgery by rehabilitating the shoulder he hurt during a wild-card win at Dallas.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Before Jimmy Garoppolo finished his 17-minute season-ending news conference, he wanted to deliver a message to the San Francisco 49ers fans who supported him the past five seasons.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Jimmy Garoppolo's playoff performance is all anyone would need to understand the decisions the San Francisco 49ers made last offseason at quarterback.
The lack of downfield throws and handful of bone-headed plays explain why the Niners felt the need to trade three first-round picks to draft Garoppolo's eventual replacement in Trey Lance third overall.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Jimmy Garoppolo's long-term future as quarterback in San Francisco has been in doubt ever since the 49ers traded away three first-round picks in the spring to make Trey Lance the heir apparent at the position.