49ers Twitter and The Trey Lance Wars

I was going to go into the defensive side of the ball on my stat dive series, but people just can’t let go of the Trey Lance Wars. National reporters claim he has fallen out of favor and is QB3, and Lance Haters are in rapture, breaking into touchdown dances and industrial-strength trolling.

Who makes the call on QB order? Kyle Shanahan. Did these national reporters talk to Kyle? Unlikely.

Does opinion now hold much sway or will training camp decide QB2 and QB3? That would be camp.

So should the haters put away the dancing shoes? One day you could eventually get your chance to dance on Lance’s 49er grave, but it ain’t now.

If Lance were limited athletically with an average but accurate arm the hate would disappear. People can claim it's not about skin color but their quarterback style preference is very cultural. They can claim Kyle wants an accurate processor and doesn't care about a strong arm, but Kyle drafted Trey and may sign Kirk Cousins next year. Yet the hate is directed at Trey, not Kyle.

Lance hasn't been developed by the team and only played four games. The Niners claim Lance has been given plenty of chances? Come on now.

Let’s give intellectual honesty a shot.

1. Brock Purdy earned the starting job through his play last year.
There shouldn’t be any talk of we need to see what Trey has right now. If Purdy is fully healthy, he plays. He gives the Niners their best chance to start the season well, which is a must if they are to get the No. 1 seed.

That said, the Niners are placing a lot of pressure on Brock to return. Purdy should make absolutely certain he is fully healthy and fully ready before taking the field. His career must come first.

2. Supporting Brock Purdy does not mandate hating Trey Lance.
And yet we have this ongoing hatred. Why? If Lance is the bust and failure you claim he is, then he won’t see the field. Purdy and Lance support one another fully yet the fans can’t.

I lived through this with Joe Montana and Steve Young, I covered the team when Young was acquired. The player zealot debates back then were just as ugly and just as intellectually dishonest. “Young is a bust, Young runs too much, Young will never win anything.” Good call, Chumley.

I’m not claiming Trey Lance is Steve Young, no chance of that, but I raise the history to draw this comparison. A lot of torch-holding player zealots turned player haters dug graves way too early, tossed Steve Young in them, and ended up looking like fools. Don’t give in to hate.

Lance may fail, but you are way too eager to bury him. Show some patience. No quarterback busts in the NFL after four games. Lance will likely not be extended, so he has one or two seasons left with the team, depending on whether the Niners will take market value back before next year’s draft. “Bbbut I want him gone now!” Revenge for Jimmy Garoppolo, hell hath no fury.

3. Try as you might, you can’t erase the Houston game.
The telltale sale of the most ardent Lance hater -- an all-out reflexive effort to sweep the Houston game under the rug. Lance played well, particularly in the 2nd half when Shanahan finally called plays aligned with Lance’s strengths. Trey got them the win in a must-win game against an opponent that had just given the Chargers and Justin Herbert trouble. “The garbage Houston game.” Enough already, it happened, and it helped the team. Leave the gymnastics to Simone Biles.

4. You’re probably not going to like how Kyle’s biases play out.
Say Purdy isn’t ready and Darnold gets the nod, victory, vindication! Then Darnold throws a dumb pick or two and coughs up a fumble in Week 1. He plays for a week and it's do not pass go, straight back to the bench. Same thing could happen where Lance fails and is benched.

Point being, Kyle is a player when it comes to quarterbacks. Everything is temporary. Think Kyle won’t bench Darnold if Sam remains turnover prone?

Well, nearly everything is temporary. Fast forward to next year and Kirk Cousins in free agency. The one bachelorette Kyle will give a rose to, the one where he’ll put a ring on it. 36, pfft. It’s his childhood sweetheart. Think Kyle won’t go after him?

Yeah, Mike Florio is always wrong, but this is Kyle and Kirk Cousins. You know it’s possible and you are not happy about it. I’m certainly not. But Kyle likely is.

So what needs to happen? Kyle needs to let Purdy rip it downfield more often and Brock sinks or swims. It’ll be up to Purdy to prevent Cousins, which gives everyone a stake in Purdy’s success.

Brock starting isn’t vindication either. Are you claiming that knowledgeable coaches think arm strength is irrelevant? What do you then say if Kyle signs Cousins? Be mindful of the future young Padawan.

5. Purdy and Lance will likely need each other.
Given the Niners injury history at quarterback and the relative pass protection, chances are Purdy, Darnold, and Lance are all going to start this year. And the team will need Trey and Sam to come through to set up Purdy’s late run. So does hating Lance, or Darnold, make any sense? Nope.

6. Trey is really young.
The Niners send Trey packing or let his contract expire, but that’s not the end, Trey is still really young. And while you are convinced he is a bust, the league won’t see it that way. He’ll get more opportunities. And now he has a coach that can develop his mechanics.

Lance isn’t going to bust out of the league, he’s just going to change uniforms. And if he ever succeeds, you’ll be hearing about it from a lot of folks keeping receipts right now.

As a supporter of Steve Young, who predicted he would win a championship and be great, I kept receipts and went hunting. I expect history to repeat with Lance. Not the Hall of Fame, and he likely won't win a ring, but I think he will succeed, it just won’t be in a Niners uniform. And I’ll be rooting him on.

If this team is to have a good shot at a ring, it’s going to need all 53 players – not 52.