The Trey Lance-era in San Francisco is officially over after the 49ers traded the former No. 3 overall pick to the Dallas Cowboys. The move, which ESPN's Adam Schefter first reported, comes just two years after the 49ers traded up to draft Lance 3rd overall in the 2021 draft.
Just like the Cowboys acquiring quarterback Trey Lance Friday, the original trade to draft Lance could not have been more surprising. Leading up to the 2021 draft, the 49ers were coming off a 6-10 season after former quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo spent a good chunk of the season injured. Despite Garoppolo leading the 49ers to a Super Bowl appearance in 2019, his frequent injuries and play left a lot to be desired.
The 49ers went into the draft with the 12th overall pick, but wanted to make a move for a game-changing quarterback. The 49ers ended up trading up to the Miami Dolphins' No. 3 overall spot in exchange for the Dolphins getting the No. 12 pick in 2021, a first and third-round pick in 2022, and another first-round pick in 2023.
SF made the deal with the Dolphins about a month before the 2021 NFL Draft. Leading up to the pick, there was tons of speculation on which quarterback the red and gold would take. With both the Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Jets slated to pick ahead of the 49ers and presumed to take Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson, the top options for the 49ers were Mac Jones, Justin Fields, and Trey Lance.
It became widely assumed that the 49ers would take Mac Jones out of Alabama. However, John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan shocked all when they ended up taking Trey Lance instead. Lance was a risky pick. Though he demonstrated tremendous talented and athletic potential that won Shanahan over, he only started one full season and one game during his college career, in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The one season he started was phenomenal, he led North Dakota State to a perfect 16-0 record while throwing 28 touchdowns and 0 interceptions. However, he played outside of power five conference, which called into the question the level of competition he faced.
The pick ended up a massive bust for the 49ers. Lance only appeared in eight games during his two years in the Bay Area and only started four of those games. Despite sitting for most of his rookie season, Lance was named the starter ahead of the 2022, but broke his ankle in week 2. With this injury, Lance had barely played any football over the past three years. This stalled his development significantly when the 49ers were in win-now mode, ultimately leading to the trade.
The Dolphins were massively successful in this trade. The Dolphins used the picks they acquired from the 49ers to trade up to the No. 6 overall pick from the Philadelphia Eagles in 2021 to snag wide receiver Jaylen Waddle. They would use the other picks to help trade for both wide receiver Tyreek Hill from the Kansas City Chiefs and linebacker Bradley Chubb from the Denver Broncos. The Eagles used the picks they then got from the Dolphins to select WR DeVonta Smith and trade for A.J. Brown, both who turned out to be critical players for Jalen Hurts' development and their 2022 Super Bowl run.
It's safe to say this move was a major blunder for the 49ers and likely the worst move in the John Lynch-Kyle Shanahan era. Thankfully for the 49ers, they've still managed to contend in the NFC and go to back-to-back Conference Championship Games.