San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance says he’s ready to go but what can we expect?
Though his selection as the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft suggests he’s quality, we’ve seen very little of the 49ers quarterback due to injury.
To learn that Trey Lance has only had four starts in his two-year NFL career is incredible, when considering the pomp and circumstance with which he entered the league. Yet, it would be unkind to forget the unfortunate manner in which his most recent campaign was essentially ended, before it really began due to a terrible injury. What can we expect now that he claims to be good to go?
Trey Lance is ready to go but what’s that mean?
According to his comments earlier this week, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance is now fully fit having completely recovered from an ankle break which ended his campaign in Week 2 of the last season. Indeed, Lance went on to disclose that he’s currently going through the full offseason program with the team. “Probably toward the end of March, I would say is when I was 100 percent,” Lance said. “The finger (Lance injured it last offseason) was probably a past thing throughout this whole rehab process. I felt like it got to that point, pretty close to that point, after my rookie year, after that offseason.”
Lance also explained how beneficial it’s been to participate in the offseason workouts and of course being back out on the field. “It’s been an awesome offseason for me, just being able to spend time finally getting back to football, finally getting back to being around the guys,” Lance said.
What do we know about Trey Lance?
In truth? Not much. Prior to his selection by the San Francisco 49ers as the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Lance was the starter for North Dakota State during one single season (2019). The following year, he would play just one game as the season was cut short by the global pandemic. Up next came the Draft and his maiden season in the NFL during which he had two starts as a result of first choice quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo, being unavailable due to injury.
In his second season, tragedy struck as Lance went from being handed the starting spot ahead of Garoppolo, to suffering a season ending ankle injury in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks in the very first quarter. That’s to say that up until that point, Lance’s only full game for the franchise was a 19-10 loss to the Chicago Bears in Week 1. In that game, he completed 13 of 28 passes for 164 yards and an interception. This is not to say the kid isn’t any good. It’s just going to be very interesting to see how he takes to a team that he’s been with for two years, but has hardly played with. In the eight appearances that he’s had across two seasons - including those four starts we mentioned - Lance has completed 56 of 102 passes for 797 yards, while scoring five touchdowns and conceding three interceptions. He’s also posted 54 carries for another 235 yards, as well as one rushing TD.
Patrick Mahomes lends a helping hand
One of the more interesting aspects of Lance’s pre-season routine that has been reported, are the sessions that he’s had with Kansas City Chiefs quarterback and 2023 Super Bowl winner, Patrick Mahomes. Lance revealed that he had absorbed a wealth of information from the Chiefs’ star, not only about the game, but also how to train and prepare for it. “I learned a ton. I was able to focus on the right things,” Lance said. “Being able to be around Patrick was awesome. To pick his brain and learn about just the type of guy he is, how he spends his free time, offseason, and then more about his in-season schedule as well.”
The Brock Purdy problem
It’s worth mentioning at this point, that recent reports suggest that break out talent and second-year quarterback Brock Purdy is currently favored to clinch the starting spot in the Bay if he’s healthy and that ‘if’ is a big one. You may recall that after a stunning series of performances as starter following injury to Garoppolo, Purdy who was the third string QB at the time and in his rookie season led the Niners to the NFC Championship Game.
Sadly, he would suffer a UCL tear in his throwing arm which would later result in having to undergo Tommy John surgery. With that said, it’s clear that the franchise invested a great deal more in Lance - draft capital and salary included - than they did in Purdy who entered the league as “Mr. Irrelevant.” At any rate, San Francisco is about to witness an intriguing battle between two promising quarterbacks.