49ers greeted by flash flood warnings in Chicago for season opener against the Bears
CHICAGO -- The Trey Lance era with the San Francisco 49ers got off to a soggy start Sunday as a weather system moved into the Chicago area bringing with it drenching downpours and a flash flood warning.
The wet conditions at Soldier Field will keep 49ers star tight end George Kittle, who is nursing a groin injury, on the sidelines. The soggy turf will also make for less than favorable conditions for Lance's first start of the season.
The second-year signal caller has only a handful of games in the elements under his belt. At North Dakota State, Lance played his home games under a dome.
"Local law enforcement reported flash flooding due to heavy rain across portions of the north side of Chicago with several impassable roads," the National Weather Service said. "Between 2 and 3 inches of rain have fallen. Additional rainfall amounts up to 1 inch are possible in portions of the warned area particularly in Cook County. Flash flooding is already occurring."
The 49ers were remaining positive about the rain in the team's social media posts.
The Bears and Niners will be playing on new turf after Bermuda grass was installed this week instead of the usual Kentucky bluegrass.
A switch like that probably wouldn't draw much attention elsewhere. But in Chicago, where the choppy conditions at Soldier Field have frustrated the Bears and opposing teams for years, it's a different story.
The new grass figures to be tested Sunday.
With conditions being what they are, the 49ers are likely to rely on Lance's running abilities.
"He's confident, had a good camp, got as many reps as he has ever gotten before," 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said heading into the game. "Has been thrown in a ton of tough situations, some good situations and now it's time to go play."
The 49ers have been building for this since they traded three first-round picks to draft Lance with the No. 3 overall pick in 2021 out of FCS school North Dakota State.
He spent most of his rookie season backing up Jimmy Garoppolo. The Niners decided to hand him the keys this season, hoping his athleticism and big-play ability would open up the offense.
There could be calls to go back to Garoppolo, who took a big pay cut to remain in San Francisco, if Lance struggles. But if he delivers the way the 49ers hope, that won't be an issue.
"Just getting into my routine," Lance said. "It's been awesome this week and a little bit of last week just to be able to kind of nail that down for this week."
The weather will also put press on the 49ers offensive line. Aside from Lance, they are the biggest offensive question coming into the regular season opener.
Three interior linemen have only three career starts. Center Jake Brendel, who entered the league in 2016, started his only three games in 2018 in Miami. Left guard Aaron Banks barely played as a rookie and right guard Spencer Burford won the job after being drafted in the fourth round out of Texas-San Antonio.
The Niners are in better shape at tackle with All-Pro Trent Williams anchoring the left side and Mike McGlinchey back after on the right side after missing the second half of last season with a quadriceps injury.
