San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance (5) takes part in drills with the Minnesota Vikings during NFL football training camp in Eagan, Minn., Wednesday, Aug. 17, 2022. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

EAGAN — The Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers held their first joint practice session at TCO Performance Center in Eagan on Wednesday morning, headlined by the return of Marshall High School graduate Trey Lance as starting quarterback for the 49ers.

“It’s good to be back,” Lance said at a news conference after practice Wednesday. “It’s fun, obviously. Going to get a couple of great days of work. It’s fun to practice against someone else and see another defense, traveling, and getting to the hotel and spending a lot of time with the guys.”

Lance has a business-like approach to these days of practice, but added it’s good to see friends and family. He also noted that the Marshall Tigers football team will be traveling to Thursday’s practice, courtesy of the Minnesota Vikings.

“The Vikings, I appreciate them. they got some buses for my high school team to come out so I can say ‘what’s up’ to some high school coaches and some teammates as well,” Lance said.

Lance played in six regular season games as a rookie a season ago for the 49ers, with a pair of starts. The No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft finished with 603 passing yards and five touchdowns, along with 168 yards and a touchdown on the ground.

No longer a backup, Lance is excited to be a starting quarterback in the National Football League.

“That was always the dream,” he said. “It happened fast, but I’m excited to be here. I’ve obviously settled in now in Year 2, just excited for this year.”

In these joint practice sessions, Lance is facing a new-look Vikings defense led by new defensive coordinator Ed Donatell as well as a veteran group in the secondary highlighted by Patrick Peterson and Harrison Smith.

“The new stuff they are doing this year is fun to practice against,” Lance said. “They give a lot of good looks. They are a very talented defense with a lot of guys who have played a lot.

“Like I said, they have some guys especially in the secondary who have played a lot of football, so just picking those guys’ brains and watching how they play helps me out a lot…Just watching them play, watching their moves, watching them 7-on-7s and in the red zone especially and their pre-snap looks specifically, they do a great job. Those guys have seen a lot of football.”

Despite the excitement of the coming to Minnesota to practice in his home state against his hometown team and in front of familiar faces, Lance is making sure he doesn’t lose focus of the business at hand this week.

“I was excited (to come home) for sure. I get to see my family and see some friends, but it’s work at this point. These two days should be awesome for us and of course Saturday as well,” Lance said.