NFL insider updates why 49ers didn’t trade Trey Lance

There’s more information about why the San Francisco 49ers didn’t trade quarterback Trey Lance before or after the 2023 NFL Draft. 

“There really was never a lot of interest in Trey Lance,” ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter said during a Wednesday appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” per David Bonilla of 49ers WebZone. …”There was no trade market, and (head coach) Kyle Shanahan has said that they didn’t have any trade talks with teams. He’s not going anywhere right now. He’s there.” 

Lance is coming off a season-ending ankle injury he suffered in September, lost his starting job to 2022 rookie sensation Brock Purdy and has attempted only 102 career regular-season passes in the league. While it was reported ahead of the draft that the Minnesota Vikings and 49ers “talked about” Lance during the scouting combine, multiple in-the-know individuals later pointed out the 23-year-old had little value as a tradeable asset. 

49ers general manager John Lynch made it known before the draft he expected to hold onto Lance through the summer months as Purdy recovers from the March surgery he had to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. While the 49ers believe Purdy is on track to start the regular-season opener at the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 10, it’s thought that free-agency signing Sam Darnold has leapfrogged Lance on the depth chart ahead of training camp. 

“And I think going into camp, Sam Darnold, I think, has the edge going into camp,” Schefter continued. “But, by the way, Trey Lance could play great. He worked over the summer with [Chiefs quarterback Patrick] Mahomes, and I heard he’s made tremendous improvement. I’m anxious to see how much he’s improved and whether he can make that jump. Let’s see it.”

The 49ers still don’t know when Purdy will receive clearance to practice or how he’ll look against live defenses following the injury he suffered in late January. Thus, it makes sense the franchise wouldn’t trade Lance for pennies on the dollar, especially after they ultimately lost three quarterbacks to serious setbacks from September 2022 through the NFC Championship Game loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.