A massive trade proposal has the San Francisco 49ers giving Trey Lance a fresh start with an NFC club that has a murky quarterback situation.
Last week, 49ers’ head coach Kyle Shanahan made it clear that there was no quarterback controversy in San Fran, stating that QB1 Brock Purdy would “have to melt in practice” to lose his starting job.
Lance, the No. 3 pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, opened 2022 as the 49ers’ starting QB. But he suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 2, prompting the 49ers to go back to Jimmy Garoppolo. But after the latter suffered a season-ending foot injury, Purdy stepped in and won his first seven starts of his starts (including playoffs) en route to an NFC Championship appearance.
With Purdy cementing himself as the QB1, Lance has been heavily mentioned in trade rumors. ESPN’s Seth Walder proposed a trade that has San Fran sending Lace, 2024 and 2024 sixth-round picks to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in exchange for 2024 second and third-rounders:
“The Bucs aren’t contenders in 2023, so their moves should be focused on saving money and acquiring draft assets. But there’s one exception to that framework: chasing quarterback upside. They might as well use the upcoming 17 games as a testing ground for a potential future QB — even if he’s a long shot. That precisely describes Lance. If there’s a 10% chance that Lance can become a long-term solution for the Bucs, that’s still a lot higher than Baker Mayfield’s chances to be that guy…
The 49ers would gain a 2024 third-rounder (while giving back a seventh) and essentially trade up in the second round. (While we don’t know any team’s 2024 draft position yet, that could be a substantial jump given the forecasts for both teams.) This deal arms the Niners with more draft capital for next season while retaining Sam Darnold as their backup signal-caller to Brock Purdy for 2023.”
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After losing Tom Brady to retirement, the Bucs settled on Baker Mayfield in free agency and decided to open a quarterback competition between him and Kyle Trask. At this time, Mayfield is the front-runner to be named the Week 1 starter.
But Walder’s trade proposal makes perfect sense for both sides here. Tampa can bet on upside at a reasonable price, while San Fran would get two early-round picks for a QB who may never even start for them again.
