The San Francisco 49ers continue to sound very uncommitted to Trey Lance as their longtime quarterback. Could the Minnesota Vikings make a trade for him?
Even before he was selected by the San Francisco 49ers with the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, quarterback Trey Lance has always been someone that people continue to link to the Minnesota Vikings.
Lance growing up in Marshall, Minnesota certainly has a lot to do with it, but the uncertain future of Kirk Cousins with the Vikings is also something that plays a part.
Currently, the connection is still there, and on Monday, some comments from 49ers general manager John Lynch made it seem like his team is willing to move on from the young quarterback sooner than later.
Trading for San Francisco 49ers QB Trey Lance would be difficult for Minnesota Vikings
This offseason, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo wound up signing a deal with the Las Vegas Raiders after spending the last six years of his NFL career with San Francisco.
With Garoppolo gone, many would assume that Lance will re-take his role as the No. 1 quarterback for the 49ers in 2023, especially considering how much San Francisco gave up to acquire him in the 2021 draft.
However, it doesn’t sound like the 49ers believe Lance will be the one to emerge as their starting quarterback before the start of the 2023 regular season.
John Lynch makes it clear that Brock Purdy, Trey Lance and Sam Darnold will all compete for the 49ers' QB job but that Purdy if/when healthy is "the leader in the clubhouse" based on track record established in 2022
— David Lombardi (@LombardiHimself) March 27, 2023
Judging by this comment from Lynch, it seems like San Francisco could definitely be willing to trade Lance in the near future if they’re presented with an enticing enough offer.
For those who would like to see the Vikings trade for the Minnesota native, a lot would have to take place in order for something like that to happen.
First, the Vikings would have to figure out what to do with Kirk Cousins, assuming they would want Lance to start immediately.
Cousins is in the final year of his contract, and a simple solution would be to convince him to accept a trade to the 49ers (no-trade clause gives him final say). But San Francisco won’t be in need of a starting quarterback if Brock Purdy is recovered enough from his elbow injury to be ready for the start of the 2023 regular season.
Is there a scenario where the Vikings could trade for Lance and just have him sit behind Cousins for the 2023 season? Anything is possible, but it wouldn’t make a ton of sense to give up valuable draft capital for someone that won’t play until 2024 and could also potentially be off the roster by the 2025 offseason.
So unless Minnesota figures out a way to move on from Cousins this year, trading for Lance doesn’t currently make a ton of sense for the goals that they’re attempting to accomplish in the future.