How Reuniting Trey Lance With Christian Watson Can Elevate 49ers Offense

The San Francisco 49ers offense will be led by Trey Lance next season; one of his former collegiate teammates can help it thrive.

The San Francisco 49ers are heading into a new era with the former starting quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo, allegedly on the way out after five years with the team. 

The 49ers will seek to move him this offseason, and second-year signal-caller Trey Lance is destined to take the team's helm. However, after unloading a pair of first-round choices to acquire Lance in the 2021 NFL Draft, it is unlikely that San Francisco seeks a top-tier player at the position.

With that being said, Lance showed glimpses of promise in his rookie season. After all, he -- not Jimmy Garoppolo -- threw the first touchdown pass for the 49ers in 2021. 

Trey Lance's first pass in the NFL is a TD.

Off to a great start

(via @NFLBrasil)pic.twitter.com/k6g6JpN5ah

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 12, 2021

The former third overall pick will have an entire offseason to prepare, and Niners brass does not have to look any further than the Cincinnati Bengals blueprint (to an extent) of how to bring out the best in a young quarterback.

The Bengals opted to select 2021's AP Offensive Player of the Year, Ja'Mar Chase to reunite with his former LSU Tiger counterpart Joe Burrow. The duo set records and showed unparalleled chemistry on their march to Super Bowl LVI.

For general manager John Lynch, taking a deep dive into Trey Lance's former collegiate receiver, Christian Watson, would be wise.

At North Dakota State in 2019, the Lance-Watson connection combined for 732 yards on 34 pitches and catches. More importantly, the duo accounted for six total touchdowns on the season. 

Top #FCS Plays of 2019 🏈

One week after making his first career touchdown catch, Christian Watson was at it again hauling in this 19-yard strike from Trey Lance in the back of the end zone as @NDSUfootball went up 15-0 on Northern Iowa.#TBT pic.twitter.com/89FDUrCWPB

— NCAA FCS Football (@NCAA_FCS) August 20, 2020

The 6-5 receiver most recently put on a show at the Reese's Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. For most of the week, many scouts raved about Christian's athleticism, change of direction, willingness as a run blocker, and gifted playmaking capabilities as a receiver. 

This isn’t normal body twitch and lateral COD from a 6-4 wideout. Such an easy fluid recovery too. Reps like this are why @NDSUfootball WR Christian Watson’s stock is rising coming out of Senior Bowl week. 🕹📈#BestoftheBest#TheDraftStartsInMOBILE™️ pic.twitter.com/BDlpiqzyC3

— Jim Nagy (@JimNagy_SB) February 15, 2022

While he separated himself from his peers on the field, he also mentioned how much of a "blessing" it would be to reunite with his former collegiate quarterback at the NFL level in off-field interviews. 

Former North Dakota State receiver Christian Watson on potentially teaming back up with his former college Quarterback Trey Lance. pic.twitter.com/2S6hnkFFp1

— Eric Crocker 🥷🏾 (@Crocky209) February 2, 2022

The 49ers possess elite threats in both George Kittle and Deebo Samuel. However, after them only leaves Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings as options. Aiyuk has had his fair share of ups and downs, while Jennings came on strong late last season.

There's no better way to bring the best out of 'the rest' and Trey Lance if Kyle Shanahan and the company opt to use a top-100 selection on Christian Watson in April's draft. 

For Burrow and Chase, it paved their way to a Super Bowl run after the Bengals only won six total games in the previous two years. For a 49ers team that reached the NFC Championship game for the second time in three years, pairing the former Bison can enable the team to hoist a Lombardi in 2022.