Schefter isn’t writing off Trey Lance in 49ers’ QB2 competition

Trey Lance is attracting a significant amount of criticism this week thanks to a poorer-than-expected preseason performance against the Las Vegas Raiders. NFL analyst Marcus Spears recently said the San Francisco 49ers' trade to move up in the draft to acquire Lance may go down "as one of the worst trades in the draft in the history of the NFL."

Former NFL executive Michael Lombardi is drawing criticism for the comments he made on his podcast, saying, "At the end of the day, when his momma lifted him from the crib, he just didn't have that quarterback instinct."

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Lance entered the offseason competing with Sam Darnold for the QB2 job behind recovering quarterback Brock Purdy. Many believe Lance has slipped below Darnold on the depth chart after Sunday's preseason outing and that the former No. 3 overall pick might be looking at the QB3 job instead.

One NFL insider doesn't believe the competition is close to over, though.

"No, I don't think [a decision has been] made at all," ESPN's Adam Schefter said during an interview on the "Pat McAfee Show" on Thursday. "I don't. I think that they're open-minded there, and I think they like Sam.

"You know, I think Trey, the first couple of weeks, looked probably a little bit sharper than Sam did. But we said this to you in June. That's what preseason's for. They have two more games. They have more practices.

"I think it's pretty close right now. I'm not writing off Trey Lance like that at all and saying he's [quarterback number] three."

Schefter added, "Brock Purdy is the quarterback. I've said it to you before. I'll say it again. He's the starting quarterback. And then, what they do behind him, I think, is still up in the air. I don't think they know yet."