Trey Lance career timeline: How QB fell from No. 3 pick by 49ers to backup role with Chargers, Cowboys

John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan have made their share of brilliant moves since arriving in San Francisco to lead the 49ers out of one of the darkest periods in franchise history, but their decision to trade up for Trey Lance will go down as a glaring mistake.

In a 2021 draft littered with All-Pros and Pro-Bowlers near the top of the first round, the 49ers swung a deal well in advance of draft night to move up to the No. 3 overall pick from No. 12. Their goal was clear: find a franchise quarterback who could replace Jimmy Garoppolo sooner rather than later.

San Francisco believed Lance was the answer, but he found himself on the move just two years later.

Here’s a look at Lance’s career timeline, from his arrival in San Francisco to backup roles with the Cowboys and Chargers.

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Trey Lance career timeline

Lance put together an interception-free 2019 season at North Dakota State, but the Bison played only one game in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making the Minnesota-born quarterback a mystery entering the 2021 draft. 

2021: Drafted by 49ers

After reportedly debating between Lance and Alabama’s Mac Jones, the 49ers selected Lance with the No. 3 overall pick they had acquired from the Dolphins nearly a month earlier.

Lance’s stock was widely considered higher than Jones’ at the time, but he was more of a mystery after a brief but impressive career at FCS North Dakota State. The 49ers were betting on Lance’s tools, and it was hard to blame them given Shanahan’s success with getting the most out of quarterbacks. Lance also wasn’t in position to start right away with Garoppolo still on the roster, so he would have time to learn. 

Lance started two games in place of an injured Garoppolo in 2021, going 1-1, and tossing five touchdowns and two interceptions. It was enough for Lance to enter the 2022 offseason as the 49ers’ projected starter.

2022: First season as starter cut short by injury

Lance was barely more than a game into his first season as a starter when he suffered a severe ankle injury against the Seahawks in 2022. The injury put Garoppolo back under center until he also went down in December and gave way to a relatively unknown Brock Purdy. The rest is history.

For Lance, the 2022 season didn’t amount to much of a chance to show what he could do. His only full game came in torrential rain, with the 49ers losing to the Bears at a muddy Soldier Field, and he went down in a win over Seattle the following Sunday. Because Purdy played so well down the stretch, there was no guarantee Lance would even get the opportunity to compete for the starting job in 2023.

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2023: Traded to Cowboys

Shanahan was fairly insistent throughout the months leading up to the 2023 season that he expected Purdy to be the 49ers’ starter, even after major shoulder surgery. San Francisco also brought in Sam Darnold, signaling that Lance wasn’t even guaranteed to be Purdy’s backup.

The competition played out exactly that way: Purdy claimed the starting job as expected, Darnold earned the No. 2 role, and Lance was traded to the Cowboys for a fourth-round pick ahead of the roster cut deadline at the end of training camp. Lance spent the 2023 season behind Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush, never appearing in a game.

2024: Cowboys’ No. 3 QB

Lance entered 2024 as the Cowboys’ No. 3 quarterback behind Prescott and Rush, though a midseason injury to Prescott elevated Lance to No. 2 for the second half of the season. In a rare extended look during the preseason, Lance failed to make the case for himself. He threw five interceptions in a game against the Chargers, making headlines for the wrong reasons just ahead of Week 1. 

Despite some fans clamoring for Dallas to give Lance an extended opportunity with the season teetering, his only start came in a Week 18 game against the Commanders. Lance finished 20-of-34 for 244 yards, with Dallas holding its own but ultimately falling short against a Washington team that inserted Marcus Mariota into the game to protect Jayden Daniels.

2025: Signs with Chargers

Lance agreed to a one-year, $2 million deal with the Chargers worth up to $6.2 million after becoming a free agent for the first time. He isn’t expected to enter the season as Justin Herbert’s direct backup, with those duties falling to veteran Taylor Heinicke, but he has a clear path to sticking as L.A.’s emergency No. 3 QB with DJ Uiagalalei as his only competition. 

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When was Trey Lance drafted?

The 49ers drafted Lance with the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, so he is already entering his fifth season in the league.

As painful as the miss was for San Francisco, the quarterback crop in the 2021 draft wasn’t strong enough for the organization to feel too bad. Justin Fields and Mac Jones, drafted after Lance, have both struggled to stick as starters. In fact, Jones is Purdy’s current backup in San Francisco. 

Here’s a look at every quarterback drafted in 2021:

How old is Trey Lance?

Lance is 25, turning that age on May 9. 

Lance wasn’t even yet 21 when he heard his name called by the 49ers in 2021, which is one reason why teams are still willing to give him a look. He’s played so sparingly since his age-19 season at North Dakota State that there could still be some untapped potential in his arm, at least in the eyes of some.

The Chargers certainly aren’t banking on Lance ever becoming the player the 49ers envisioned he would be, but they have seen enough to trust him as insurance behind Herbert and Heinicke entering 2025.