The 49ers Feelings on Trey Lance Are Evolving

Are the 49ers considering trading away Trey Lance? The 49ers are not taking it easy on their former third-overall pick. At the annual NFL Meeting, 49ers GM John Lynch said, “I think Brock (Purdy) has earned the right with the way he played that he’s probably the leader in the clubhouse at that…if we were to line up, he’d probably take that first snap.”

49ers Added Competition for Trey Lance

Lynch was not shy in saying that once Purdy is healthy, he’ll likely be the starter. Purdy’s recovery is going to be a long road and the timeline is unclear on when he’ll return. To add injury to insult, the 49ers brought in former top-3 pick, Sam Darnold to amp up the competition for Lance even more and the 49ers mentioned that Darnold and Trey Lance will split first-team reps leading up to the season. Lance is coming off a season-ending fractured lower right fibula suffered early in the 2022 season.

Since being selected third overall by the 49ers in the 2021 NFL Draft, Lance has just 102 pass attempts. Lance was already viewed as a project coming out of North Dakota State where he only threw 318 pass attempts. This means that Lance is now in his third season in the NFL and since graduating high school has only thrown 420 total pass attempts.

Is it too late for Trey Lance? I don’t think Lance’s career is over but his window of opportunity with the 49ers is becoming smaller and smaller. Purdy shined as the starter while Lance was fairly average. The 49ers have already spoken with their actions and words this offseason. Lance will have to earn the starting job this offseason. If Lance isn’t able to beat out Sam Darnold he will very likely be traded prior to the 2023 season. In a quarterback-needy offseason, a 2nd-3rd-round pick is probably very much on the table.