Golden Nuggets: Aaron Banks rumbling for that starting LG spot

Reporter: Thursday believed to be 49ers QB Trey Lance’s best practice of the offseason

“Lance has impressed people within the organization so far this spring, and the team feels he’s already shown progress early in organized team activities,” Kyed recently wrote for Pro Football Focus. “Thursday was believed to be his best practice of the offseason.”

New 49ers QBs coach Griese explains approach with Lance

“He continued to pose questions: Are you here for the money? The glory and fame? For the competition? To build relationships? To make your family proud?

“Things like that to give perspective that I think is not so granular,” Griese said. “When you’re 3-5 and everybody tells you how bad you are, you have to have a broader lens. The other thing is those relationships. Who are you playing for?

“And when times get tough, do you have a depth of relationships with the people in that locker room and the coaching staff and the organization to pull from? That helps manage stress and high anxiety situations. There’s no substitute for that for a quarterback.”

49ers assistants on Aaron Banks’ bulk, Brandon Aiyuk’s progress, Ty Davis-Price’s allure (paywall)

“Offensive line coach Chris Foerster is bullish about Banks’ potential to take over the starting left guard spot vacated by Laken Tomlinson, who signed with the Jets. The 49ers challenged Banks, who weighed 338 pounds at 2021’s Senior Bowl, to work on his body composition over the past year so that he’d be athletically ready to execute the offense’s outside-zone concepts.”

CB Charvarius Ward already paying dividends for 49ers

“You can’t have a better example of that and a better way to learn,” Undlin told the Athletic about Ward’s press coverage skills. “And for him, to also open up to the (cornerbacks) room and talk about how he goes through his progressions, whether it’s press or off (coverage) or any technique — that’s something I think can help Ambry (Thomas).”

Why Ambry Thomas is ‘in a great spot’ despite 49ers’ offseason CB additions

“The fact that AT, he earned that opportunity [to start] as he kept coming through the season,” defensive pass-game specialist and secondary coach Cory Undlin said this week, via the team’s official YouTube channel. “But he didn’t play in 2020, so I think that gap ... that’s a long time when you sit out a year, COVID or not.

Branch: 49ers mailbag: Dennard’s comeback bid, slimmed-down Kinlaw and Gray’s rookie role (paywall)

“However, Dennard was an unsung late-game standout in that comeback win. And he was with the first-team defense during Tuesday’s open-to-the-media practice at slot cornerback, a position that has been manned since 2017 by K’Waun Williams, now with the Broncos. I asked head coach Kyle Shanahan and secondary coach Cory Undlin about Dennard this week. Look for an upcoming story on his bid to resuscitate his career with the 49ers.”