Trey Lance Gives His Take on Jimmy Garoppolo Returning to the 49ers
SANTA CLARA -- Trey Lance spoke to the Bay Area media Thursday for the first time since Jimmy Garoppolo took a pay cut to become the 49ers backup quarterback. Here's what Lance said.
Q: What was it like to have Jimmy back out there?
LANCE: It was awesome. It's good to have him back. Good to have him back in the building, in the QB room again. Just like I said, he's been a big brother to me since my first day in the league, since the day I got drafted. I know he has got my back. I got this back, and I'm excited to go through this year with him. He's gonna add a lot to our QB room. That's the goal for us to have the best QB room in the league. And then we're pretty damn close if we're not there. But I'm super excited just to have him in the room. Another guy who has done it. Got to watch him do it last year, got to learn a ton from him and I'm going to continue to learn as much as I can from him.
You know, take all the advice that he's got for me this year.
Q: Did this come as a shock to you?
LANCE: Not necessarily a shock. I kind of knew. He's always been on the roster and I see him around every day. We talk almost every day. So, definitely not a shock, but was excited for Nate Sudfeld that he got another opportunity. Didn't know what would happen between Nate and Brock Purdy and everything with cut day. So this week has been a little bit of ups and downs, lost some guys that I was pretty close with, but it's just how it goes. But no, definitely wasn't a shock. Like I said, it's great to have him back.
Q: Did you have any trepidation when they mentioned it to you?
LANCE: Could you define trepidation? <laugh>
Q: Nervousness, anxiety.
LANCE: No, no, not at all. I was super excited. Like I said, he has done it. I'm going to use him as a huge resource for me throughout this whole entire year. He's always been willing to help me out, so I'm super excited for it.
Q: Kyle said he made it a point to speak with you before bringing back Jimmy. What was his message to you?
LANCE: Just that nothing changes. Just like I said, it makes the QB room that much better. Another great resource for me. A guy that's played this offense, a guy that's done it. He's played a lot of ball, so for me, my mindset is just that Jimmy's going to be a huge resource for me as he always has been since draft day.
Q: The conversations that you had with Jimmy before he was coming back for sure, you said it was about life. Does it shift now to more football talk?
LANCE: Yeah, I mean we're around each other a lot more so we're around each other in meetings, around each other in the building more, lifts, workouts, everything like that. So definitely we get to talk more ball, which has been awesome, him watching practice with us, meeting with us, just him being back around, it feels great.
Q: What was your first interaction with him like after you found this out?
LANCE: We talked the night that the news broke just on the phone, or we texted and then I saw him that next morning we had practice. So I came in, we talked at his locker for a little bit. I mean, nothing's changed between us. I can say it a million times, but he's been my big bro and nothing's gonna change there.
Q: What changes now that you're the 1 he's the 2?
LANCE: I don't think the relationship changes. It's different roles, but like I said, he's still going to be a huge resource for me. I'm going to be able to ask him questions, bounce ideas off him, watch tape, plays in practice, asking him after each play what did he see? Same thing I can do with Nate and same thing I can do with Brock and with all of our QB coaches.
Q: Does this put more pressure on you?
LANCE: No. For me, I'm worried about what the guys in the lockerroom think, what I think, what the coaches think, what the guys in this organization think. This is going to be a collaborative group, and I know Jimmy is going to have my back through it all.
Q: Was it normal having him there in practice?
LANCE: Yeah, it was super normal actually. You guys probably wouldn't even believe it, but it was fun to have him around. He's a high energy guy in the huddle, outside of the huddle, in the locker room and whatever it is. He's a great dude to have around and I'm super glad he is back.
Q: Did you have meetings with him before practice?
LANCE: Yeah. The day after he signed, a couple days ago, Tuesday was his first day back in the building. So we met Tuesday, got to talk, him and Brian Griese and Klay Kubiak got to talk. But yeah, it's gonna keep growing and I'm super excited for it.
Q: You could really hear Jimmy -- he's got that megaphone. Is that something as a quarterback that you work on and something that you've talked to him about? How loud he projects?
LANCE: Yeah, absolutely. For him, I think it definitely comes a little bit more naturally. I've got to try to talk in a deep voice so I don't sound 22. But that's one of the many things that I know he's going to bring, just like I've said, a resource for me to bounce ideas off and get advice from and continue to learn as much as I can.
Q: You talked about role reversals. One is leadership. He was the leader of this team for a long time. Now you're the leader, but he's still here. Is that strange?
LANCE: I'm sure from outside looking in, but from our team, nothing's changed. Nate obviously left, got a new opportunity in Detroit and Jimmy's in his spot. So for me in my mindset, nothing changes. I don't think for our team or organization anything changes. Like I said, just another upgrade to the QB room.
Q: What kind of summer do you think you had, and what areas do you think you've been good at and what areas do you think maybe need improvement?
LANCE: I've had a great offseason and training camp. I think things have went well. I've gotten to know the guys better and the new guys, Ray-Ray, gotten to throw to George and Deebo and some of those guys that didn't get to work with this offseason as much. Ups and downs for sure. That's every day going against our defense and the stuff we do. You've got to be ready to go. So I think my mental toughness, my mentality has changed in a good way. There's ups and downs to, every day, every rep. So I'm learning as much as I possibly can. There are countless areas that I know I'm going to continue to improve onm and countless areas that I have improved on as well.
Q: Did Kyle ask you if you were OK with this?
LANCE: No. It's not my decision. It's an organization decision. But when they told me, like I said, Jimmy's been on the roster, on the team this whole entire time. So obviously I knew it was a possibility to bring him back. And there has been no bad blood between me and Jimmy since Day 1. All arms open, excited to have him back.
Q: What's the dynamic of the quarterback room between you, Jimmy and Brock?
LANCE: Brock's done a great job. He's been awesome. I was super excited for him. Everyone congratulated that he made the roster, and he deserved it. He earned it this whole preseason, the whole training camp, even going back to OTAs in the way he handles himself. He's actually older than me, so that bugs me a little bit. But it's been great having him in the room, the way he's picked up the offense so fast. His footwork is still improving and he's doing a great job. Great guy to be around.
