NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport believes the 49ers will be able to trade Lance, but not before the team is 100% sure about Purdy’s health.
After the 49ers drafted Trey Lance in 2021, the talk was whether he’d beat out Jimmy Garoppolo. Last year, in his first full offseason with the team, we all figured he’d win the starting job. Which happened, but not without endless speculation and the re-signing of Jimmy Garoppolo.
This year, in an alternate timeline, we’d already know who Lance is as a player and whether he’d be on the trajectory to help win the 49ers a Lombardi Trophy. Instead, Trey is looking at a three to four game tryout.
Welcome to the Niners, Trey.
On Pat McCaffee’s podcast Monday morning, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport was asked if there’s any chance the 49ers trade Lance:
That’s what kind of makes it interesting. We know that there’s some team who says, we loved this guy in the draft. He’s only 23. He’s played very little football. But very talented. Somebody else liked him as much as the Niners did.
So, I do think they’ll be able to trade him. I just don’t know if they’ll do it before they know that Brock Purdy is 100 percent healthy. I’ve heard his [Brock] comments. Everything that I’ve heard is more optimistic than his comments.
They think there’s a good chance that he’ll be throwing by training camp and that he’ll be good to go. If that’s the case, then this is something that could happen in late August, or if someone has an injury in training camp.
The timing and messaging of everything Lance/Purdy related recently has been ____? There isn’t enough time in the day to finish that sentence.
Why has there been such a late push in the media saying that Purdy’s healthy? It’s April. We don’t need to know that. Let’s listen to the people in the know, such as Dr. Jeff Dugas, and focus on what matters, like where Brock’s at 12 weeks after surgery and how far he’s throwing in August.
San Francisco potentially trading Lance isn’t anything new. A couple of times a week, they’re involved in a new rumor. But if the 49ers intentions were to trade Lance, doing so now, leading up to the draft when his value is at an all-time low, makes little sense.
Mike McFeely of The Forum caught up with Lance at North Dakota State’s final spring practice on Saturday. Trey told McFeely, “I’m all cleared, so I’m good to go. I got cleared a little over a month ago, so I’m feeling really good and let’s get back to work.”
Lance suffered a gruesome looking ankle injury early in Week 2 that cost him the rest of the 2022 season:
“Last year I played the one game in Chicago and then got hurt, so it was kind of over before it even got started. But I am just excited for this year. This offseason, just focusing on getting better. Focusing on getting these guys better in the locker room and just being a great teammate, a great leader.”
Lance can say all of the right things in the media, but it’s time to show what he can do on the field.