49ers’ Trey Lance enjoys football again • FootballR

As the San Francisco 49ers began organized team activities last week, quarterback Trey Lance and linebacker Curtis Robinson spoke about how important it was to them to just be able to get back to work. Lance became fully aware of how much it means to him just to participate again.

“I really feel like I’m enjoying playing football again,” Lance said. “It was difficult in the first few years. Especially in the last year. … I finally feel like I can have fun and enjoy it again.”

Lance’s journey back to the 49ers’ practice program was one of frustration, as he only managed 102 pass attempts in his first two seasons due to injury-related issues. In 2021, it was a broken right index finger that lasted longer than expected and required treatments that Lance is only now putting behind him. After being promoted to a starter in 2022, Lance suffered a fractured right ankle early in the second game against the Seattle Seahawks that ended his season.

Both seasons, Lance has also struggled with a declining throwing arm, which he attributes to overworking his arm in preparation for the 2021 NFL draft and beyond. Now Trey Lance estimates his ankle was 100% healed by the end of March and the finger injury healed last season. According to Lance, the difficulties surrounding his weakening throwing arm have also subsided and he hopes that the discussion will finally come to an end.

“It’s been a great offseason for me, where I’ve finally had time to get back to football,” Lance said.

All of this has gotten Trey Lance to where he is now at OTAs in Santa Clara. But currently in a completely different position than in 2022. Last year, Lance had worked his way up to number one in the 49ers quarterback rankings. There was no competition with Jimmy Garoppolo or the then freshly drafted Brock Purdy. Lance didn’t have to fight for the job. All he could do was lose it.

A lot has changed since then. Garoppolo joined the Las Vegas Raiders, while Purdy is considered a likely starter after his 7-1 record in last season’s NFC Championship Game once he recovers from elbow surgery. In addition, veterans Sam Darnold and Brandon Allen were committed as free agents. Although other teams have expressed interest in Lance, the 49ers did not receive a sufficient offer to consider a trade. General manager John Lynch has made it clear he expects Trey Lance to stay with the 49ers in 2023.

Where does Trey Lance currently stand?

In the first week of the OTAs, he got his first plays as a starting quarterback. Although head coach Kyle Shanahan has repeatedly stressed that once the team gets into 11v11 drills, he wants to give Darnold roughly the same number of plays with the starting players. Lance and Darnold are currently competing for the backup position. But until Purdy is healthy, Sam Darnold and Trey Lance appear to be fighting to be the temporary starter.

While all of this is happening behind the scenes, the 49ers quarterback team is unaffected by outside speculation. “The momentum is great,” Purdy said. “We all get along really well and I’m really looking forward to the future with this group of guys.”

Trey Lance seems happy with the current state of affairs. Shanahan and Lynch have shared with him where Purdy stands if he is healthy. He was also kept up to date on potential trade prospects. However, Lance made it clear that he intends to reclaim the job he lost last season.

“Nothing has changed for me,” Lance said. “As for Brock, I told you the same thing last year at the end of the year. My chance is to come in and compete. That’s all I wanted. I don’t want to take anything away from Brock and nobody should be able to take anything away from Brock. … I just want to have the opportunity to prove myself.”

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