The San Francisco 49ers are coming off a season in which there was a revolving door at the quarterback position until the team leaned on rookie Brock Purdy to lead them into the NFL playoffs and to the NFC Championship Game.
San Francisco couldn’t stay healthy at quarterback, with both Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo going down with season-ending injuries before Purdy took over and went undefeated before getting hurt himself against the Philadelphia Eagles in the playoffs.
Fortunately for the 49ers, the team will start the 2023 NFL season healthy at the quarterback position, with Purdy ready to get back under center with Lance and veteran newcomer Sam Darnold backing him up.
Even though Purdy proved his worth to the team and took the NFL by storm last season, there are still questions about whether he can do it again in 2023, which makes some believe there’s a quarterback battle in San Francisco.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan has made it clear on more than one occasion that the team is sticking with Purdy as their starter, but Nick Wright of Fox Sports thinks there’s still a quarterback controversy in San Francisco and said that what is being done to Lance is unprecedented, via “First Things First.”
Should the 49ers have a QB battle?
"Of course, and if Brock Purdy wins good for him. What is happening with Trey Lance is unprecedented. … You have to go back 34 years to see someone taken in the Top 10 that the team was like, 'You don't get a chance.'" — @getnickwright pic.twitter.com/8f7vKARBrq
— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) August 8, 2023
Yes, the 49ers traded a lot of move up to take Lance at No. 2 overall in the NFL Draft, but that doesn’t mean he would pan out as a starter, as there are no guarantees even with high draft picks.
Even though Wright lists a ton of quarterback busts that got plenty of starts in the NFL, the fact of the matter is when a coach sees who a guy has it and one who doesn’t, he’s going to go with the one he’s sold on.
That’s why the team has been trying to trade Lance for over a year because they know they’ve got something special with Purdy, and Lance may never pan out, so it is what it is in San Francisco, even though it may not seem fair.
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