Trey Lance is in a great situation. He was the No. 3 overall pick in April's draft and is expected to be the quarterback of the future for the San Francisco 49ers. However, there is no urgent need to throw Lance into action. Instead, the quarterback will have time to sit and learn — a luxury that is not often given to a top-3 draft pick.
Veteran Jimmy Garoppolo is slated to be the Week 1 starter when the Niners take on the Detroit Lions. Lance will likely be his backup.
There were some concerns that the quarterback situation might create some locker-room awkwardness. Garoppolo is well-liked by his teammates, but Lance is part of the long-term plan. Garoppolo and others have made Lance feel welcome, and the veteran has been completely professional about the situation, well knowing that his days with San Francisco are probably numbered.
Garoppolo was the first 49ers player to reach out to Lance and welcome him after the rookie heard his name called on draft night. Garoppolo also hasn't been resistant to taking on the role of a mentor for the inexperienced quarterback.
Lance recently spoke to KVRR in Fargo, North Dakota (h/t to Josh Shrock of NBC Sports) and shared what it's been like learning from Garoppolo.
"Yeah, it's been awesome," Lance told KVRR. "He's a great guy. I mean, one of the best people I've been around, and I've been fortunate to be around some, I think, really, really great people, guys that are going to play today and guys still in that locker room right now. Jimmy is just like it, and that organization is the same exact way.
"So I just feel very blessed and fortunate to be where I am and be able to be a part of something like this. I've heard from other guys' experiences and how we handled OTAs and things like that, our coaching staff and everyone that runs that organization does it at a really high level."
According to Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area, Lance's offseason development has been going well. The longtime 49ers beat writer recently said via a radio interview that the young quarterback has shown improvement like no player he's seen before.
"You could actually see him growing and learning," Maiocco added in the interview via Kirk Larrabee. "He's putting in the time. I'm not ready to stamp his ticket to Canton or anything, but so far he is certainly the guy they thought he would be from a character standpoint, a work ethic standpoint. Then it doesn't take long to see the physical tools as well."
Meanwhile, Garoppolo sees Lance's presence as yet another challenge. The veteran is 24-9 (including playoffs) as a starter but has missed 23 games over the past three seasons, including being sidelined for 10 games last season.
Garoppolo isn't letting all of the negative media speculation surrounding his future impact his preparation for the upcoming season.
"I want to say it's just white noise, but it definitely motivates me," Garoppolo said in May. "I'm not going to lie. That's the competitor in all of us. You hear things like that. At the end of the day, there's only one quarterback out there, but you want to go compete and do whatever you can to be that guy. It's kind of a motivator in the back of your head, at the same time."