Lance selection ends narrative about Kyle Shanahan

With the selection of Trey Lance, Kyle Shanahan put a narrative to rest that had been following him for years. This narrative being that Shanahan only likes one certain type of QB, with that being traditional pocket passers that can just do enough to run the offense. 

The narrative was brought on basically because of Kirk Cousins. Cousins was drafted by the Shanahan’s in the 4th round of the 2012 draft. Washington also took Robert Griffin III that year but it was clear that the Shanahan’s didn’t like him. They were fired from Washington in 2013.

Since then, Kyle Shanahan had a bevy of QBs with a similar skill set in Hoyer in Cleveland (he was opposed to the Browns taking Manziel), Matt Ryan in Atlanta and Garoppolo in San Francisco. The only one of these that was truly in Shanahan’s control was Garoppolo. The rest he kind of just had to work with because they were there when he was the offensive coordinator. 

It didn’t help Shanahan’s case that he was never exactly quiet about his love for Kirk Cousins. He’s admitted to it many times. So the narrative is about all these QBs but it is mainly about Cousins. People thought Shanahan was chasing a QB he coached for 3 whole starts before leaving Washington almost a decade ago. It was only really half-true, and I think it was overblown. 

This is all what lead to people thinking Shanahan was going to take Mac Jones. A not-very-athletic, pure pocket passer at QB whose top traits are accuracy and intelligence, two things Shanahan admittedly values a ton, but so does everyone. People thought this was the QB Shanahan fell in love with, only because that’s all he’s ever had to work with despite never really having a choice besides Garoppolo. Another part of it was people compared Fields and Lance to RGIII when the comparison is as lazy as it gets if you watch the QBs for even 5 minutes. 

We might never know for sure if Shanahan himself had a fundamental change at how he views the position or if the narrative about him was just overplayed speculation that was used as a springboard for clicks. Regardless, the narrative should now be laid to rest as Shanahan chose a QB who is different from any he has ever had before. He didn’t choose a guy that’s like Cousins, Ryan or Garoppolo. He chose a totally different style. Sorry Kirk Cousins narrative, it’s over. It’s not you, it’s Shanahan.