Trey Lance's time with the San Francisco 49ers may go down as one of the most scrutinized decisions of the Kyle Shanahan era. The 49ers parted with significant draft capital to move up to the No. 3 overall pick in 2021 to select the quarterback. After two seasons, the team ultimately traded Lance to the Dallas Cowboys.
The emergence of Brock Purdy, who took over as the 49ers' starting quarterback during his rookie 2022 season and has held the job ever since, greatly contributed to the decision to part with Lance.
Lance signed with the Los Angeles Chargers this offseason, where he is working under former 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh. This weekend, Lance and Harbaugh return to the Bay Area as the Chargers close out their preseason at Levi's Stadium against the 49ers.
After Tuesday's practice, Shanahan was asked whether he had noticed any differences in Lance this preseason with the Chargers.
"I haven't got a chance to watch him," Shanahan admitted. "I'm sure he does. The more he practices, the more he works, he is only going to get better. So, I expect to see him like that when I watch him, but I haven't got a chance to yet."
When asked what lessons he took away from his experience with Lance and evaluating quarterbacks in general, Shanahan offered an honest response.
"I take everything away from every situation," Shanahan said. "I don't want to sit here and evaluate Trey too much. I think I've done that before. But when I revisit that, we knew where our team was at, and we knew where it was going to be the next couple of years, and we were committed to getting a rookie quarterback.
"We weren't sure that it would be forever, but we thought that was important to—contractually, with where our team was at—keep a good team together. So, we knew we were going for a rookie, especially after a veteran left earlier that year, that was an option. So, that was more of a plan in that way."
This marks the second time during the preseason that reporters have asked Shanahan about Lance, which is unsurprising with the 49ers and Chargers set to face off this weekend. The first question came after Lance's preseason debut with the Chargers in the Hall of Fame Game.
Despite the circumstances that led to Lance leaving the Bay Area after once being viewed as the 49ers' quarterback of the future, Shanahan remains supportive of his former player.
"Now, we can go back to what we thought and everything, which I have no problem doing anytime, but I don't want to sit here and evaluate Trey again," Shanahan added. "I'm pulling for Trey. I love Trey. One of the best people I've been around, and I really hope it works out for him."