SANTA CLARA — As the rain drizzled down on Thursday in Santa Clara and the 49ers gathered in their typical pre-practice huddle, one player took off his helmet and began to address his assembled teammates, readying them for the team’s longest practice of the week.
The identity of said player was obstructed by towering linemen as they gathered to hear his message. Not too much later, a single hand went up into the air, joined by those of his teammates. Then the group dispersed, revealing Chase Lucas putting his helmet back on.
“I got to say what I need to say to my boys, and getting them juiced and ready to roll,” Lucas told NBC Sports Bay Area. “I feel like everybody says I always know what to say, but I’m just speaking from the heart. Whatever comes to my head, if it makes sense.”
On Thursday, Lucas was urged by George Kittle to break down the huddle. Once, a shared responsibility between the All-Pro tight end and Fred Warner, who suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 6, Kittle vowed not to be the only one to address the team the remainder of the season.
“I don’t like talking every single time,” Kittle told NBC Sports Bay Area. “I don’t want to talk in every single speech. There are guys on this team who have voices, who need to be heard, and Chase is one of those guys who might not get a lot of reps on defense, but he’s working really hard on special teams, and he leads the guys by example. His energy is good for us.”
Lucas, who was a team captain while at Arizona State, is used to talking in front of a group. The defensive back was drafted in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, where he played for two seasons, predominantly on special teams.
In 2024, Lucas joined the 49ers’ practice squad before earning a spot on the roster this season, where he has been on the field for 62 defensive snaps and 140 on special teams. Often seen energetically chatting with everyone on the team, Kittle saw Lucas as the perfect candidate to speak to the team.
“Yes, he did,” Lucas said, confirming Kittle’s request. “He said, ‘You got something you want to say to them?’ I said, ‘Hell, yeah, I got something I want to say to them.’ So I just told them we got a great opportunity in front of us, and this season can change within this game. It could change positively or negatively.
“We got to go out there and do what we can, to be in the best positive way.”
Knowing Lucas has what it takes to address the team did not come as a surprise to Kittle. Even while on the practice squad in 2024, the tight end knew the defensive back had a special quality, or what Madden NFL calls an “X-factor.”
“We joked about it in the preseason that he has an X-factor in Madden, and it’s the juiceman because he always has high energy and it’s very infectious,” Kittle explained. “He’s like KB [Kendrick Bourne] for the defense. Always in a good mood, always bringing it.
“Always 100 percent effort. When you have guys like that it gets everybody around him to go. Got the guys going on a rainy day. That’s all we needed.”
San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle speaks with reporters after practice Thursday at the SAP Performance Facility in Santa Clara.
Kittle isn’t the only one on the team who has recognized Lucas’ energy. Coach Kyle Shanahan and defensive coordinator Robert Saleh have told the Arizona State product as much.
“That’s what Saleh and Kyle are saying,” Lucas said. “But I feel like I’m just Chase. I just do the same thing every day. Whether someone is coming with me or not, I’m going to bring that energy.”
As far as background in speaking to his teammates, “I’m not new to it, I’m true to it,” Lucas said.
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