We’re less than two weeks away from the 49ers reporting to training camp (rookies report next week), and we already know that the San Francisco QB news will be the most prominent topic coming out of the practices. There will be videos of quarterbacks throwing passes in warmups, reporters giving us QB stats, writers writing about it, and content creators talking about it daily. And most of us will read and watch each one.
I’ve had a handful of fans tell me they’re sick of reading and hearing about the 49ers QB situation. I understand that, but when the national media and local media keep it on the forefront, and when the team itself, keeps the drama alive, we will continue to discuss and write about the quarterbacks (like I’m doing right now), especially when three first-round picks were used on one of them.
Speaking of that quarterback, I remember thinking the Alex Smith saga divided the fanbase. Then Jimmy Garoppolo came along and made the Smith controversy seem mild. And just when I thought no player could top the Garoppolo rollercoaster, along comes Trey Lance.
It’s important to point out that these players have not caused the drama. They just happen to be playing a position on a team whose fanbase expects greatness and championships. Smith, Garoppolo, and Lance have done nothing wrong. So any concerns over Trey Lance should actually be about the 49ers, rather than Lance. He didn’t trade multiple first-round picks and draft himself.
And while the fanbase and media may be divided on whether Lance will be the 49ers QB of the future, the only opinions that matter reside at 4949 Marie P. DeBartolo Way, namely John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan.
So do the 49ers still believe in Trey Lance? I tend to think they do, but there are four things that make me ask the question:
1. Kyle Shanahan’s play-calling
In 15 games (60 quarters) in 2022, Garoppolo and Brock Purdy ran the ball a combined 39 times. In comparison, Lance has carried the ball 42 times in less than four career games (under 15 quarters). Garoppolo and Purdy averaged 2.6 rushes per game last season. Lance, in 10 quarters as a rookie in 2021, and less than five quarters in 2022, has averaged over 10 carries per game.
If Lance had the ability to run like Justin Fields or Lamar Jackson, that would be a little more understandable, but he doesn’t have that kind of ability. Fields and Jackson are running quarterbacks. Lance is a quarterback who is mobile. There’s a difference.
Shanahan calls plays differently when Lance is in the game. He obviously doesn’t trust Lance to throw like he does with Garoppolo or Purdy. Granted, most of that time was in Lance’s rookie season, and the rest was in a rainy game in Chicago. But Purdy was a rookie last season, and Shanahan still let him throw.
2. Media leaks
Last offseason there were a lot of controversial things said about Lance and the 49ers, ranging from arm fatigue to coaches and players losing faith in Lance. Some of those things now appear to be true, although some of it was either untrue or out of context. This offseason has been no different.
Adam Schefter joined the “Pat McAfee Show” last month and was asked if the 49ers would trade Lance before training camp. Schefter responded, “There really was never a lot of interest in Trey Lance…There was no trade market.”
