San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance has fallen down the depth chart behind Brock Purdy and Sam Darnold. With only a few weeks remaining until 53-man rosters are finalized, Lance’s future in San Francisco is an open question around the league.
The 49ers paid a premium to acquire Lance. Ahead of the 2021 NFL Draft, San Francisco traded three first-round picks and a 2022 third-round pick to draft the young quarterback out of North Dakota State. However, the years since haven’t gone as planned.
- Trey Lance stats (NFL): 2-2 record, 84.5 QB rating, 54.9% completion rate, 235 rush yards, 4.4 ypc in eight career games
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San Francisco used the 2021 season as a year of development for Lance. He needed some work coming out of an FCS program and having played only one game in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the 49ers named Lance their starter entering Week 1 of last season.
Playing in terrible conditions on the road, Lance finished with a 50.3 quarterback rating and 46.4 percent completion rate against the Chicago Bears. One week later, he suffered a season-ending ankle injury. As he recovered, Brock Purdy cemented himself as the 49ers’ starting quarterback just as reports emerged that San Francisco had lost its confidence in Lance.
The 49ers hoped that Purdy’s recovery from elbow surgery would result in Lance taking advantage of his additional reps in training camp and the preseason. Instead, the third-year quarterback has been inconsistent in practice and struggled in his first preseason game. He’s now firmly behind Purdy and Darnold on the depth chart, prompting questions about his future in San Francisco.
In an in-depth piece comparing Lance’s situation to Alex Smith, Matt Barrows of The Athletic addressed the young quarterback’s future with the 49ers. While he acknowledges that Lance is now effectively competing with fourth-string quarterback Brandon Allen, it’s unlikely the 49ers cut or trade Lance at a huge loss.
“But to cut Lance in favor of Brandon Allen or trade him for a mid-round pick or otherwise give up on him? It doesn’t sound like a smart move or one that general manager John Lynch is inclined to do. Lynch, after all, wasn’t the Pro Bowl player he would become when he was drafted in 1993. Far from it. It took him four seasons to become a full-time starter and five to make his first Pro Bowl, and he’s constantly reminding himself of his own history so as not to make rash decisions on players.”
Matt Barrows on Trey Lance’s future with the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco already explored its trade options with Lance this offseason. When that happened, there was very little interest around the league and no one was willing to come close to the range of compensation the 49ers wanted in return.
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Lance hasn’t shown anything this summer to encourage another NFL team to trade for him. So, the 49ers view their options as effectively either cutting Lance just three years after spending three first-round picks on him or rostering him and exercising patience.
With one of the deepest and most talented rosters in the NFL, San Francisco can afford to use a roster spot on a project player. It’s still unlikely Lance ever reaches his ceiling with the 49ers, especially because he isn’t receiving the reps he needs, but it’s evident San Francisco doesn’t want to accept defeat on its big bet.
