The 49ers quarterback job is Trey Lance’s to lose

At the beginning of the offseason, most expected the 49ers would move on from Jimmy Garoppolo to open the door for Trey Lance.

Unexpected shoulder surgery for Garoppolo curtailed trade talks, and the team has chosen to keep the quarterback on the roster.

The situation around Garoppolo has led many to question how the team feels about second-year quarterback Trey Lance. After all, the 49ers used three first-round draft picks and a future third-round pick to land their quarterback of the future.

“There’s a lot of questions of what this means for Trey,” Lynch said. “The great news is we’re extremely positive, as I’ve said, and Kyle’s said, on Trey’s progress. This offseason, he’ll have ample opportunity — as will Nate [Sudfeld] — to get plenty of reps. And we’re looking forward to that process.”

Here is how I see this playing out.

Lynch’s comments are as close to showing your hand as one can get without laying their cards on the table.

Without coming out and saying it, Lynch is telling us the team expects Trey Lance to be the starter and Nate Sudfeld the backup.

Garoppolo will not begin throwing until early July. As a result, the two will get all the practice reps during OTA and minicamp practices.

The job is Trey Lance’s to lose at this point. The 49ers don’t expect that to happen.

With other teams refusing to trade for an injured Garoppolo at this point and lacking salary cap space, reporters asked Lynch if the team would release the quarterback.

“I don’t foresee that; he’s too good of a player,” said Lynch. “I think Jimmy will be playing for us or somebody else. He’s too good of a player not to be.”

Lynch went on to tell reporters the 49ers feel good about having what they believe are three solid quarterbacks while most teams are looking for one.

I believe this is posturing on Lynch’s part and don’t believe we will see Jimmy Garoppolo throw another pass in a 49ers practice. If Garoppolo steps onto the practice field at the start of training camp, it will be due to Trey Lance performing poorly during the offseason program.

Expect Trey Lance to be the starting quarterback for San Francisco in week one and Jimmy Garoppolo to be elsewhere.