Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
There's been no shortage of individuals within the San Francisco 49ers organization that have come to Kyle Shanahan's defense this week. A very vocal segment of the fanbase and media has criticized the head coach's use of
Trey Lance. The quarterback suffered a season-ending ankle injury during the first quarter of Sunday's win against the Seattle Seahawks.
One respected analyst, a Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback and 49ers icon, believes the idea that Shanahan is to blame for Lance's injury is laughable.
"Look, it's football, and running quarterbacks out of the huddle is dangerous," Steve Young told KNBR's Tom Tolbert and Adam Copeland on Thursday. "You remember last year when Trey played—I think it was against the Cardinals—I think [Shanahan] ran him 13 times out of the huddle. I mean, we all kind of were like, 'Really, is that what we're doing?'
"At some level, you want to believe that we're putting Trey in the best spot to be successful. Running him, certainly, we saw last year, was going to be in the cards. And so I worry that Trey—like, there's guys that can run because they understand how to get down and get out of trouble, and there's guys that don't."
Lance started only two games last season, throwing a combined 71 pass attempts as a rookie. In 2020, he played just one game at North Dakota State due to COVID protocols.
"Trey has so little history that we can draw on," Young said. "Everything's new knowledge. Is Trey maybe not that guy to be calling quarterback runs out of the huddle? We thought he was, but maybe not."
While Young feels bad for Lance having to endure the road back from such a devastating injury, his surgery on Monday was successful. The young quarterback is expected to recover fully and be ready for the start of the 2023 season.
The problem is that this is yet another abbreviated year for the inexperienced quarterback. Heading into last year's draft, most saw Lance as a high-ceiling quarterback who needed time to develop. Unfortunately, that development will now have to wait until year three.
"I think there remains tons of questions because we all have them, and he has to go prove it to us all," Young said. "As far as Kyle's culpability for an injury—Tom, I've got to be honest with you. That's kind of a goofball question."
Young looked back to his own playing days and being asked to execute quarterback runs. He retired with 4,239 career rushing yards.
"They believed I could do it, and that's OK," Young shared. "And I believe that they believed that Trey could do that. If that's putting Trey in too much risk ... Hey, look, quarterback runs for
Tom Brady, that would be culpable. That would be a problem. That would be, what are you doing? But a quarterback run for Trey Lance? That's part of the deal, isn't it? And he got hurt, and I hate that.
"My point is maybe, going forward, when Trey gets back on the field, now we realize it might not be the thing that really he's comfortable doing because we're finding this out. I don't have a lot of tape of him running quarterback runs in college and high school, really. So that's what's hard.
"Isn't that part of the deal we made with Trey, is that we believed he was a guy that could do that? So [Shanahan] makes the call, and he gets hurt. So the idea that he's [to blame]—I don't know. I'm not much for that one."
You can listen to the entire conversation with Young below.
It could be six months. It could be eight months. The San Francisco 49ers don't have a clear picture right now regarding quarterback Brock Purdy's recovery timeline. They will have a better idea in June, though. That's when the second-year quarterback will begin throwing again and ramping up his workload for the remaining portion of his rehabilitation.
Purdy underwent surgery to repair the tear of the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow, an injury suffered on January 29 in the NFC Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
"He won't be able to do anything on the field for—who knows?" head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters Tuesday morning from the NFL owners'
The San Francisco 49ers expect Brock Purdy to be ready to play between early September and early November. That's a significant range considering the 2023 NFL season begins in early September. Head coach Kyle Shanahan, speaking with reporters at the NFL owners' meetings in Arizona, said the team expects its 23-year-old quarterback's recovery from his March 10 surgery to be six to eight months.
The 49ers will know more in June, when Purdy begins throwing again and starts ramping up his workload as part of his rehab.
"It might be Week 1," Shanahan said. "I think I'm hearing, at the latest, Week 4. But that's just all estimations, and we'll see what
Rohan Chakravarthi and Grant Cohn discuss whether the 49ers are favorites in the NFC after free agency.
The audio for the show is embedded above, while the video is available below.
?feature=share
You can listen to "The Rohan Chakravarthi Show" from our
John Lynch made one thing very clear on Monday morning during the NFL owners' meetings in Arizona. The San Francisco 49ers like their current quarterback room, comprised of Brock Purdy, Trey Lance, and Sam Darnold.
Lynch clarified one more thing: If Purdy were completely healthy and ready to play come Week 1, he would be the starter. Of course, there is so much uncertainty surrounding Purdy's health.
On March 10, the quarterback underwent surgery to repair the tear of the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow he suffered in the NFC Championship Game. His recovery is expected to go into September. Although, Lynch and the 49ers are hopeful the second-year