Once again, the San Francisco 49ers find themselves entrenched in offseason quarterback drama. Brock Purdy, the rookie signal-caller who took the NFL by storm this past season, is recovering from surgery on the torn ligament in his elbow. Unfortunately, that means likely missing time until September, putting his Week 1 availability into question.
The 49ers' former No. 3 overall pick, Trey Lance, is returning from a season-ending ankle injury. He still has only four starts after two seasons under his belt, making it impossible to gauge his potential just yet.
San Francisco signed Sam Darnold, who has started 55 career games but only won 38 percent of those matchups.
Even after watching several players walk away in free agency, the 49ers remain one of the most talent-rich teams in the league. However, with head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch entering year seven with the organization, it's tough to believe that the quarterback situation remains unresolved.
Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer joined Rich Eisen this week to discuss the 49ers' uncertain quarterback situation and what it all means for Lance and his future with the team.
"Trey Lance needs reps, OK? Trey Lance needs to play," Breer told Eisen. "If you look at the number of throws he's had since, I guess really, since 2019—2019 was his last full season played. That number is so small."
Lance has played only 262 snaps and attempted 102 passes since entering the NFL. He played just one game in 2020, his final season at North Dakota State, attempting 30 passes.
"Here's the problem the Niners are facing," Breer continued. "Last year was the year that they were going to sort of sacrifice his development."
Lance entered last season as the 49ers' starter, despite many believing that Jimmy Garoppolo, even as a late-offseason returnee, was the better player. The hope was that Lance would take his bumps early in the season but gain much-needed experience and be much-improved by the time the Niners reached the playoffs.
A year later, having reached the NFC Championship Game in each of the past two seasons, the 49ers might have a greater sense of urgency to take advantage of their championship window.
"Now, I think this is the point where that team is such a win-now operation," Breer explained. "Like, you look at the way they're set up, and now they have this other young option and Brock Purdy. They can't afford to throw another season overboard in the name of a young quarterback's development, especially when they've got another good option on the roster.
"And so I think what they want to see from Trey Lance is, It's up to you. You can make this difficult on us. It's up to you. And we're not handing you anything this time around. And it sucks because that's not your fault. You got hurt.
"I think they still love him as a person. I think they still believe he could get there if they gave him a full year to develop with reps and everything else. But I just think they're past the point where they're willing to make the sacrifice of saying, OK, we're going to let all this happen in the name of his development because they do have another option now, because they do have such a win-now roster."
Breer acknowledges that Purdy's injury opens the door for Lance. Of course, it also opens the door for Darnold, who could just as easily make a solid push to be the 49ers' Week 1 starter.
"Both those guys are going to come in," Breer said. "I think the Niners are hoping that they have a very, very healthy competition between the two for reps in the spring and summer while Brock Purdy is getting healthy. And really, it's up to those two to make John Lynch or Kyle Shanahan change their mind.
"But as of right now, I can tell you there's strong belief that Brock Purdy can be a really good starting quarterback in the NFL, and it really is on both Lance and Darnold to move the Niners brass off that spot."
Breer: 49ers QB Brock Purdy throwing without pain, on track to be ready by Week 1
By David Bonilla
Jun 5
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy started throwing again last week, his first significant throwing session (with a football, at least) since the NFC Championship Game in January when he tore the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow. Purdy underwent surgery on March 10 to repair the damage and isn't expected to be cleared to hit the practice field for several months.
The 49ers liked what they saw from his limited work last week.
"He's just had one session thus far, but we're incredibly encouraged by that," general manager John Lynch said last week during an interview on SiriusXM NFL Radio. "And Brock's a worker. If you give him a
49ers Notebook: Javon Hargrave's first 49ers thoughts; Trent Williams' weird late-night workout schedule; Wilks on DBs; Deommodore Lenoir wants to be elite
By Kirk Larrabee
6 hrs
The 49ers ended their offseason workout program on Wednesday with their final session of mandatory minicamp. But before they made their way out the door for the summer, the team gave fans and reporters one last dose of info in the form of the final media sessions of the spring.
Among those speaking to reporters on Wednesday were defensive tackle Javon Hargrave, left tackle Trent Williams and cornerback Deommodore Lenoir, as well as defensive coordinator Steve Wilks. Each session produced some interesting tidbits, which we'll review in this version of 49ers notebook.
Hargrave speaks
Despite being the splash free agent addition of the offseason for the 49ers, Javon Hargrave had not met with the team's beat reporters in person before Wednesday.
As the sun rose over the horizon, fans of the San Francisco 49ers came from all over, with great anticipation, as General Manager, John Lynch, slowly trudged his way upon the hill, disappearing into the fog for just a moment, and reappearing with Kyle Shanahan, to proclaim Brock Purdy the heir to the 49ers' QB throne. (Cue the "Circle of Life" track!)
Alright, so it wasn't exactly like that. But the 49ers' brass has made it a point this offseason to ensure everyone knows Purdy is the team's starting quarterback, once he's healthy. And while it may have lacked the drama of a scene from The Lion King, the declaration was just as impactful. (You know, if we could have had Lynch look out over the kingdom, and then hold young Purdy up in front of the team's cheering
Christian McCaffrey calls Kyle Shanahan's 49ers scheme the "most sustainable" in the NFL
By David Bonilla
May 29
You've heard stories about San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan installing a play and breaking down exactly how he expects the defense to react. Then, when the players execute the play, everything occurs as the coach explained, as if he had a crystal ball to predict the outcome.
Shanahan is a confident play-caller, emphasizing execution by his players to ensure everything goes as planned. The 49ers acquired a big-time playmaker last season, trading for star running back Christian McCaffrey, who had already established himself as one of the most versatile players in the league.
Even McCaffrey marvels at the things his play-caller comes up
