Should Trey Lance Demand a Trade From the 49ers?
It's been an ugly start to an NFL career for Trey Lance.
Opportunity and patience with him are severely lacking from the 49ers. 2023 was looking poised to be another year of not having a fair shot until Brock Purdy ruptured his UCL on the elbow of his throwing arm. Because of that, Lance is now able to step into the fold.
However, Lance might just be there to keep the seat warm for Purdy until he is recovered from his injury. Everything being spoken from the 49ers since their season ended, whether it is the players or Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch, insinuates that Purdy is the starter going forward. Nothing is in favor for Lance at this point since everyone seems to have crowned Purdy as the guy. It is starting to look like Lance and the 49ers are not the right fit for each other.
So, should Lance demand a trade from the 49ers?
Absolutely not. Now is not the time to do so. Lance has a chance going into the offseason, and possibly the regular season, that he would not have had if Purdy was healthy. That chance is getting reps and showcasing what he can do as the starter. Purdy will be on the mend, so now is Lance's chance, probably his last chance, to make his case to the 49ers as to why he is a starting caliber quarterback. He will go as far as his arm, legs, and intellect takes him.
There is also the matter on what other teams across the league would think of him if he did demand a trade. He could be viewed as someone who is pouty or dramatic of the sort. Rather than stay and compete to try to swing momentum his way, he is calling for a trade to get away from adversity and be handed his starting role. For a player such as Lance who has shown little to nothing, it wouldn't be a great look for him with other teams.
I sincerely doubt Lance ever comes close to requesting a trade this year and there is no way the 49ers will want too either. They need him right now given the variable that Purdy is with his elbow. Besides, I wouldn't blame Lance if he did request a trade, and he'd probably be valid in doing so. It's not like the 49ers have done enough to aid him in his development. His rookie season, all they had him do was be the scout team quarterback. They didn't keep him off to the side and have him work with a coach to improve.
They decided that the short-term vision was better by having him imitate different quarterbacks and offenses weekly. All of that rewiring Lance had to go through just to help his team instead of the 49ers thinking long term by working with him away from that. Now they have a guy who is no better than when he was drafted two years ago. That doesn't speak volumes about Lance, it speaks volumes about the 49ers. They went from the perfect landing spot to Lance to being the worst.
It'll be up to him to maximize his opportunities with Purdy on the mend. And should he fail, then a trade in the future will only grow increasingly likely.
