When the San Francisco 49ers selected Trey Lance with the third overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft, the team anticipated him to be their quarterback of the future. After spending his rookie season behind Jimmy Garoppolo, Lance was named the starter heading into 2022. But after suffering a broken ankle in Week 2, Lance's first season as a starter was cut short.
With Lance sidelined, and Garoppolo going down with an injury, 2022 seventh-round pick Brock Purdy was pushed into the starting role. As Purdy led the charge, the team continued to find success.
Unfortunately for Purdy, as the 49ers took on the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship, he suffered an elbow injury that took him out of the game.
Now both Purdy and Trey Lance, when they return to full health, will battle for the starting job. But according to former NFL head coach Mike Martz, Lance is not yet at the same level as Purdy.
Martz, who is with the 33rd Team, took the time to talk about what he has seen from Lance.
“All those things that I was talking about with Brock [Purdy], you just don't see that with Trey Lance. He just looks out of place. Maybe over time he gets there, maybe that happens. But, boy, he's a long ways away right now,” said Martz.
He then spoke on how Trey Lance's limited time on the field in recent seasons may be impacting him.
“I think because he's got such a limited background you'd want to hang in there because he didn't have a whole lot of college play time.”
During his three collegiate seasons at North Dakota St., Lance started just 17 games. Now over two NFL seasons, he has appeared in eight total games, with four starts.
It is still unclear what exactly the 49ers have in Lance, and based on general manager John Lynch's recent comments, the team is prepared to hand the starting job back to Purdy.
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