When Sam Darnold decided to commit his services to the San Francisco 49ers in the first week of free agency, it turned more than a few heads around the NFL.
A former third overall pick out of USC, Darnold started 55 of the 56 games he appeared in as a pro between tenures with the New York Jets and the Carolina Panthers, and while he was partially relegated to reserve duty in 2022 after the acquisition of Baker Mayfield, he played well enough down the stretch to earn fan intrigue from multiple teams looking for competition at the QB spot.
So why did he decide to sign with a team where he may end up not even suiting up on game days? Well, in the opinion of ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, many teams across the NFL actually think Darnold may play “meaningful snaps” for the 49ers after all, as soon as Week 1 even, as Adam Wells shared on Bleacher Report.
“Appearing on SportsCenter, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler said he’s talked to multiple teams that ‘believe Darnold will play meaningful snaps, even as early as Week 1 for San Francisco, because of Brock Purdy’s injury and Trey Lance’s tenuous stance with the team right now.'”
On paper, Fowler’s assertion isn’t too farfetched, as Purdy isn’t expected to be ready to play in time for Week 1, and Lance’s status is very much up in the air moving forward, with external interest in his services one of the “worst kept secrets” in the NFL, according to a GM source of Jordan Schultz. If Lance either isn’t on the team come Week 1 or finds himself second on the depth chart for one reason or another, the stage may be set for Darnold to start for a California-based team once more.
Trey Lance Has No New Information About a Trade
Sitting down for an interview with Mike McFeely of Informum.com, Lance was asked about the trade chatter that has been consistently building between the end of the 2022 NFL season and the 2023 NFL draft. Unsurprisingly, Lance didn’t have much new information on the matter.
“I got no comment on that,” Lance told McFeely via NBC Sports. “I have no information.”
What Lance did want to share was his hopes for the future, as after watching his sophomore NFL season come to an end before it ever really started, he’s ready to get back to work.
“Last year, I played the one game in Chicago and then got hurt, so it was kind of over before it even got started. But I am just excited for this year,” Lance said. “This offseason, just focusing on getting better. Focusing on getting these guys better in the locker room and just being a great teammate, a great leader.”
Will Lance be able to lead a team, the 49ers or otherwise, onto the field in 2023? Only time will tell, but as he noted to McFeely, the NDSU product has recovered from his September ankle injury and is ready to prove his mettle on the gridiron once more.
Sam Darnold Followed a Familiar Path to the 49ers
Discussing Darnold’s decision to sign with the 49ers instead of, say, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who has a clear hole at QB1, Nick Wagoner of ESPN compared the former USC product’s path to that of Mitch Trubisky, who found himself in a similar situation when he hit free agency for the first time in 2021.
“Darnold’s approach of finding the best possible situation is one another highly drafted quarterback recently took when he became a free agent for the first time,” Wagoner wrote.
“Mitch Trubisky spent his first four seasons with the Chicago Bears after being drafted No. 2 overall in 2017. He offered plenty of good and bad but eventually saw his time with the Bears end when Chicago declined his fifth-year option. When Trubisky entered free agency following the 2020 season, his hope was to find a team that could offer an opportunity to least compete for a starting spot.”
After watching many of his potential free agent landing spots dry up, Trubisky found himself in conversation with a team who already had a franchise quarterback in place, the Buffalo Bills, who presented a very interesting proposition to the former Bears quarterback.
“But Trubisky’s market wasn’t developing as hoped, and (Brandon) Beane made it clear that if things didn’t work out elsewhere, the Bills would be interested,” Wagoner added. “Buffalo didn’t have much cap space, and Allen was emerging as a legitimate star, but it could offer Trubisky the resources to reestablish himself.
“Beane’s pitch to Trubisky was simple: If you play, you’ll have top-tier talent and one of the league’s best coaching staffs to help you succeed. If you don’t, you’ll get a year to recalibrate and learn before hitting the market again.”
Though Trubisky didn’t play much for the Bills in 2021, attempting just eight passes for 43 yards, his efforts earned him a two-year, $14.285 contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he ultimately appeared in seven games with five starts before fully handing over the reins to rookie Pitt product Kenny Pickett. If Darnold doesn’t emerge as the 49ers’ next franchise quarterback, his career may follow a similar path.
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49ers QB Sam Darnold Draws Surprising Prediction From ‘Multiple NFL Teams’