Why the 49ers are Placing Trey Lance in a Quarterback Competition
A quarterback competition is set to take place with the San Francisco 49ers.
Trey Lance and Sam Darnold will duke it out to see who will be the initial starter and eventual backup with Brock Purdy on the mend. This offseason is unlike last for Lance who was essentially on scholarship. There was no competition as he was given the starting role. Besides, it's not like Nate Sudfeld was going to give Lance a real run for his money to be the starter.
"I expect them both to get first-team reps," said Shanahan on Lance and Darnold. "But I like to see them on the field. In OTAs, I expect them both to work with the first team and see how that goes."
Quite the complete flipside of what Lance will experience this offseason. Last year he was healthy and the unquestioned starter. Now, he is coming off a broken ankle while competing for a spot. It's definitely unfair to Lance, but this is the reality of the league. Besides, there is a good reason for why the 49ers are placing Lance in a quarterback competition with Darnold. It is all to both the Niners and Lance's benefit.
For starters, has anyone ever considered that the 49ers want a side-by-side comparison? It’s not a bad thing to want to compare and contrast here to see where Lance is versus Darnold. The hope is that by labeling it as a competition, because Lance should be able to beat Darnold, that the 49ers can get an expedited development/ascension out of Lance. It’s all to their benefit including Lance. A side-by-side comparison is possibly something new with the 49ers that they are holding true to now.
When Brock Purdy took over for Garoppolo last year, it became clear after the first few games that he was an upgrade. The players and structure of the offense remained the same with the only difference being with Purdy. Suddenly, the offense was able to score an extra touchdown a game because of him. This is why there isn’t a debate as to who is better between Purdy and Garoppolo since there was a side-by-side comparison. It was all on display there in games and cleared quickly.
So with Lance, the 49ers need to see that. It’s a way to gauge where he is at coming off of his injury and to fuel him. Ultimately, they would love for Lance to bury Darnold in OTAs and training camp. He should be able to. Using that, along with knowing Purdy is the lead on the depth chart, should hopefully push him into the “fast lane” of ascending and sustaining a high level of play. Lance will likely end up starting Week 1 and of course the 49ers are not going to want to start off losing.
The better and up to speed Lance is, the better it is for the 49ers. All they care about is getting a good quarterback out of this, and if it isn’t Lance, then they know they have Purdy who theoretically should step in and give them efficiency as he did last season. The 49ers do not have a horse in the race. They just want the best quarterback to come out of this and a competition is something they believe will only better Lance.
