The San Francisco 49ers are ready to turn their offense over to Trey Lance, and one franchise legend thinks the No. 3 overall pick is going to need a lot of help in his first full season as an NFL starter.
Steve Young spoke about the Lance situation during a Wednesday appearance on the Tolbert, Krueger and Brooks show on KNBR. The Hall of Famer said Lance is going to be “so raw” and pointed out that he only played in 18 games at North Dakota State. That means there could be even more growing pains than there are with a typical young quarterback. Young believes it is imperative that the 49ers sign an experienced veteran backup.
“I’m a big fan of putting someone around you who can push you,” Young said, as transcribed by Tom Dierberger of NBC Sports Bay Area. “So, I’m not looking to not do that. But more than anything, he needs someone older who can tell him ‘this matters’ or ‘this doesn’t matter.’ … Teach him how to study. How to memorize. How to be reflective recall. So that everything that comes out of him is reflective, and he doesn’t have to think about it.”
The Niners fell just three points short of reaching the Super Bowl this year. That would have been Jimmy Garoppolo’s second trip to the big game with the franchise, but he is expected to be traded. Young said Lance will be under a decent amount of pressure to win given how good the roster is around him.
“This is a team, this is a roster, that can win Super Bowls,” Young added. “You’ve seen it. We should be the best passing game, the best running game. Those middle nine defenders we have? Top of the league. Take a few months off, let’s go do this.”
Lance made two starts this season when Garoppolo was injured. He went 31-of-52 with 441 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions in those two games. Niners fans should expect more mixed results like that in a 2022 season that will likely require some patience. Signing a respected veteran backup will likely be a priority in San Francisco.
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