49ers Star George Kittle Picks A Side In Quarterback Decision Between Brock Purdy and Trey Lance

Trey Lance Brock Purdy

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The 49ers have a quarterback dilemma as they enter an important offseason in 2023. While they have what they believe are multiple capable starters in Brock Purdy and Trey Lance, both are coming off serious injuries that ended their 2022 season prematurely.

 

On Thursday, San Francisco’s All-Pro tight end George Kittle joined Buffalo Bills defender Von Miller on his podcast, The VonCastand he was asked about the 49ers quarterback situation as we head towards next season.

Kittle quickly removed  Jimmy Garoppolo from the conversation, because Jimmy G a pending free agent that will not return to the team, per head coach Kyle Shanahan.

Then, he answered:

When speaking about 2nd-year passer Trey Lance, Kittle said that while he believes that Lance has the talent, Lance hasn’t had a real shot yet, given the season-ending injury on his first year as a starter.

“Trey Lance is still there, and Trey, unfortunately, has not really gotten a fair shot of being an NFL quarterback yet. You got a full rain-game monsoon versus the Bears and he got hurt in his second game,” Kittle added. “You know, Trey’s still got plenty of talent. He just needs to get out there and play.”

 

The Decision

Then, Kittle gave his answer that rookie Brock Purdy deserves the job to start the 2023 season.

“But, you can’t talk about what Brock Purdy did. He’s fantastic. Our offense was operating at the highest it’s probably been since 2019. So, in my opinion, it’s Brock’s job to lose. But, there will be competition since Brock will be out till training camp with his surgery, so it’s going to be interesting. But, when you find a guy like that [who] can seamlessly jump in, I think it’s his job to lose.”

The problem is that Purdy suffered a torn UCL injury that will require surgery and will keep him out for at least six-months and possibly more. He will not be available for parts of the offseason.

Worth mentioning that Brock Purdy was a 7th round pick in 2022, the last pick in the Draft. Meanwhile the 49ers used the 3rd overall pick in the 2021 Draft on Trey Lance and had to trade multiple high draft picks in order to move up and grab him. They have a much deeper investment in Lance.