The Daily Sweat: How will Trey Lance perform in the final preseason game?
The 49ers are 7.5-point favorites over the Chargers
Friday night could be a big one for Trey Lance’s career.
The San Francisco 49ers are 7.5-point favorites at BetMGM over the Los Angeles Chargers in the teams’ final preseason game. Lance, who has been demoted to No. 3 behind Brock Purdy and Sam Darnold, figures to get plenty of playing time to show what he can do on the field — either for the 49ers or another team in the future.
The former No. 3 overall pick has never been able to build a foundation in San Francisco after breaking his ankle in the second week of the 2022 season. As you know by now, Purdy emerged late in the season after taking over for the injured Jimmy Garoppolo, and Lance hasn’t been able to seize the starting job back.
49ers general manager John Lynch said Thursday that the team was likely going to keep Lance. That could be a statement of fact or it could be posturing to try to get a better draft pick out of a team willing to take a chance on the North Dakota State product.
If you believe in Lance, then you’ll want to bet the 49ers to cover in the final chance for dozens of players across both teams to make Week 1 rosters. If not, then maybe you bet the Chargers or the total (37.5 points). After all, it’s the preseason. You may have a better chance winning money by throwing something at a dart board.
Lions vs. Panthers and Patriots vs. Titans
The 49ers and Chargers aren’t the only teams playing Friday night. The Lions take on the Panthers in Carolina, while the Patriots travel to Nashville to face the Titans. The Panthers are 4.5-point favorites and the total is 37, while the Patriots are 2-point favorites and the total in Tennessee is 38.5.
Scottie Scheffler still the Tour Championship favorite
Scottie Scheffler started the Tour Championship with the lead, thanks to the staggered standings at the start of the PGA Tour’s final event of the season. He ended the first round outside of first place but is still the favorite ahead of Round 2.
Scheffler is +300 to win the tournament after he shot a 1-over 71 on Thursday. Scheffler was cruising along in the lead until things started to go badly on the back nine. After dropping to 3-under for the day, thanks to a birdie on No. 10, Scheffler had back-to-back bogeys. He steadied the ship with two pars before dunking his tee shot on the par-3 15th into the water and carding a triple-bogey six.
Collin Morikawa shot a 61 to join a three-way tie for the lead with Keegan Bradley and Viktor Hovland at 10-under. Scheffler is a shot back and a shot ahead of Adam Schenk and Russell Henley.
Hovland is at +350, while Morikawa is at +550. Rory McIlroy is at +800 but is dealing with a back injury that may not get better before the weekend is over. Staying away from McIlroy could be the smart play this weekend.
Braves head to San Francisco
Spencer Strider takes the mound for the Atlanta Braves as they face off against Logan Webb and the Giants in San Francisco on Friday night. Strider has an incredible 227 strikeouts in just 146.1 innings so far and could strike out 300 batters this season. He hasn’t allowed a run over the past 14 innings as he’s given up just four hits and five walks in his last two starts.
The Braves are -160 on the moneyline and +105 to win by more than two runs.
