Back in March 2021, the San Francisco 49ers traded up from the twelfth pick in the NFL draft all the way up to pick number three. After witnessing such a blockbuster trade, it was no secret what position the 49ers were targeting at this spot. They wanted their franchise quarterback.
The entire fanbase was kept on their toes for the rest of the weeks leading up to the NFL draft. The first two picks in that year’s draft were as much as a sure thing as you can get. However, no one knew who the 49ers were going to select at number three.
Mock drafts galore came out and predicted they would go with Alabama’s Mac Jones, who was arguably the safest choice out of the three quarterbacks who were likely to remain on the board at three overall. However, there were many fans who felt that the 49ers should go a different route in pursuing dual-threat Justin Fields as their quarterback of the future.
Then, of course, there were those who believed that NDSU’s dual-threat quarterback Trey Lance was clearly the best option available. In the end, the San Francisco 49ers wound up selecting Lance with the third overall pick in the NFL Draft, a prospect who many considered to be the most raw quarterback in the draft class having only played one full season in college, but one that arguably offered even higher upside than the number one overall selection in that year’s draft class, Trevor Lawrence.
Fast forward to the 2021 regular season. Jimmy Garoppolo is named starting quarterback, as the 49ers stated that they wanted to develop Lance and get him acclimated to the NFL in the right way.
Lance is asked to come in for a couple of plays here and there throughout the first few games of the season and even gets the opportunity to start a couple of games against teams like the Arizona Cardinals in week 5 and the Houston Texans in week 17, the latter being his first career win as a niner.
It was much later revealed that Lance had been “severely limited” all season long by a hairline fracture on his right index finger which he suffered during the preseason that “did not heal properly.” Kyle Shanahan, head coach of the San Francisco 49ers spoke about how Lance went “a whole year throwing without a bent finger, which changed everything and shows the toughness of the kid that he never complained about it. He tried to adjust so he could be out there.”
The injury forced Lance to completely adjust his grip on the football, as well as his throwing motion. With Lance already being considered a project coming into the draft, this was a massive hurdle he had to quickly overcome. In the end, Lance continued to battle through, even after having sustained a small knee injury in week 5 against Arizona.
The 49ers went on to make it to the NFC championship game that year, led by their starting quarterback Garoppolo. They wound up losing in heartbreaking fashion, as Garoppolo and the offense were unable to get anything done in the final minutes of the game.
Fast forward once more to the 2022 regular season. Shanahan publicly announced that this is “Trey Lance’s team.” The first game of the regular season is against the Chicago Bears, an ugly game in which both teams were forced to play, despite the torrential downpour. The rain only appeared to get worse and worse as the game went on, as the television screen even became blurry at a certain point due to the horrific weather conditions.
The 49ers ended up losing that game but looked to bounce back that next week against their divisional rival, the Seattle Seahawks.
Unfortunately, Lance suffered a season-ending ankle injury on a designed run early in the game, as now backup quarterback Garoppolo was forced to take the reins. The 49ers took a while getting into their groove but ultimately played well with Garoppoloat the helm. In fact, after a sluggish 3-4 start, they started catching fire and won four straight games with Garoppololeading the way.
However, in week 13 against the Miami Dolphins, Garoppolo suffered a broken foot that would require season-ending surgery.
The 49ers, an NFL team with Super Bowl aspirations, were now in a heap of trouble. Their season was in mere shambles. The only quarterback healthy on the roster was a rookie whom they had selected with the very last pick in the 2022 NFL draft, Mr. Irrelevant himself, Brock Purdy.
The 49ers ended up winning that game, as Shanahan, who is also the 49ers offensive play-caller, completely flipped the game script in order to implement more rookie quarterback-friendly plays into the game, as they managed to come away with a 33-17 victory. After the game concluded, however, is when the real mayhem in San Fran had begun.
The 49er faithful were completely torn on what to do regarding their latest quarterback fiasco. People were calling for quarterback Baker Mayfield to play for San Francisco, while some remained hopeful that perhaps there was a small chance Lance could make an early return, however, it was quickly made clear that his recovery timeline hadn’t changed. The 49ers ultimately decided to roll with Purdy for that next game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a game in which Purdy dismantled the Buccaneers’ defense, making himself look like a seasoned veteran with a total of three touchdowns on the day, including an impressive rushing score.
The 49ers organization was feeling much better about their quarterback situation after this game, as Purdy ended up taking this squad on a hot winning streak, finishing the season off with an inspiring 13-4 record.
Although there were several awkward moments with Purdy at quarterback, the 49er’s offense was able to pick up right where they left off with Garoppolo and then some.
They went on to beat the Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys in the playoffs, Purdy remaining undefeated as the 49ers starting quarterback. Then, came the NFC championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles, a hotly anticipated matchup between two teams featuring ferocious defensive lines and high flying offenses.
The Eagles were the first to get on the board, scoring the first touchdown of the game, as they forced the 49ers to match. Just as the offense was looking to get things started, however, Purdy’s arm got hit hard by an Eagles defensive lineman, ultimately shattering the UCL in his right elbow. The 49ers ended up losing that game in a truly devastating fashion, as triple backup quarterback Josh Johnson ended up being ruled out for the game as well after an injury he sustained a little later on.
Now fast forward for the very last time to the 2023 offseason. When the 49ers selected Purdy with the two-hundred sixty-second pick in the NFL draft, no one expected the 49ers to actually consider him as their franchise quarterback for the start of the very next season. Yet, here we are.
In a recent interview with general manager John Lynch, Mr. Irrelevant has been named ‘leader in the clubhouse’ for the San Francisco 49ers. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the starting job will remain his by the start of week one.
As a result of his devastating injury, Lance underwent two successful surgeries in order to repair his fibula fracture and ligament disruption. In April of this year, Lance was seen working out with two-time Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes and quarterback coach Jeff Christensen. He is now one hundred percent healthy again, as Shanahan has stated that “I think Trey is the best that we’ve (seen) him right now” after reportedly making a drastic adjustment to his throwing motion, which he corrected during the offseason.
Regarding Purdy, he is currently in the process of recovering from his injury and remains on track to be ready for the start of the regular season after having successful surgery on his elbow in March.
In a recent interview, Shanahan refused to rule out Lance as the starting quarterback of this team. “We did expect Trey Lance (to be our franchise quarterback for a long time) and I think that he still can be. You also don’t expect the last pick in the draft to come in and play at that level.”
Throughout the offseason, there have been numerous reports about the 49ers fielding calls to trade their potential quarterback of the future, Lance. Since he first got drafted with the third overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft, there has been a mountain of pressure on this young man’s shoulders. When the 49ers traded up to get Lance, it sure cost them a pretty penny, and fans are always going to remember what they had to sacrifice in order to get him. The 49ers ended up parting ways with that year’s twelfth overall pick, two future first-round picks in the 2022 and 2023 NFL drafts, as well as a third-round pick in the 2022 NFL draft, giving all that draft capital to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for the third overall pick.
The 49ers have an intriguing decision to make at the beginning of the 2023 regular season. They chose to part ways with Garoppolo after the injury he sustained against Miami, due to his inability to take the 49ers to the Super Bowl and win. They also signed former third overall draft pick Sam Darnold for more depth at the quarterback position in order to ensure that their season doesn’t fall by the wayside if one or two of their quarterbacks end up sustaining yet another brutal injury.
While there have been several reports claiming that Darnold has an opportunity to start week one, it seems highly unlikely this will be the case. Even if Purdy isn’t ready to go by week one, it remains highly doubtful that the 49ers won’t give the keys to Lance.
The real question becomes what the 49ers do, assuming Purdy is healthy. We already heard from Shanahan how Lance is looking better and feeling healthier than they’ve ever seen, but no one knows exactly how Purdy will look following his recovery from the tear in his right elbow.
The thing the 49ers have to consider is that even if Purdy looks exactly the same, is that enough for him not to lose his starting job? The fact of the matter is that the 49ers are an extremely talented roster, absolutely loaded on both sides of the football. They are in “win now” mode, and no one knows exactly how long their Super Bowl window will remain open.
Purdy is certainly the safest option they have when healthy. However, the 49ers traded their future away in order to secure a quarterback with a massive amount of potential to dominate in this league. While many fans will argue that Purdy has already proven what he can do on the field, the bottom line is that he hasn’t proven that he can carry this team farther than Garoppolo has. He hasn’t yet proven he can be elite.
Standing tall at 6’4”, Lance undoubtedly has more upside than any quarterback on the 49ers roster. Playing in college for a full four seasons, Purdy undoubtedly has more game-time experience than Lance, who has only played one full college season due to Covid-19.
It should not be forgotten what rookie Purdy was able to do last season with an uber-talented 49ers squad. However, the truth is, Lance has not been offered the opportunity he deserves to shine in this league. In his first season as a rookie, he was forced to sit back and watch as Garoppolo took the reins. In his second year, Lance got injured on a designed run that had him sprinting straight up the middle of the field, which is not a play call that many fans, including 49ers legend Jerry Rice, agreed with.
Despite the rough start to his NFL career, however, Lance remains optimistic, commenting in a recent interview, “how blessed I am to be in this position. I mean, I say it every single day. I play in the NFL. Hopefully, obviously, the plan is for me to get on the field this year and really get this thing started.”
I can certainly respect all that Purdy did for San Francisco last season, but I do believe Lance has the ability to dethrone Purdyas the starter of this team, as he appears hungry for the opportunity to prove his doubters wrong.
Whether or not Lance impresses enough in practice to take over as ‘leader of the clubhouse’ remains to be seen, but I just don’t know how the 49ers could possibly be willing to give up on a quarterback they’ve traded the farm to acquire, without so much as giving him the opportunity he so rightfully deserves as a starting quarterback in this league. He hasn’t yet been able to showcase the tremendous abilities in which he flashed in college, and until he does, the world will never know what Lance is truly capable of.
