Kyle Shanahan, the Head Coach of the San Francisco 49ers, stated that Sam Darnold will be ahead of Trey Lance in the depth chart for the team’s quarterback position. Brock Purdy is the QB1 in San Francisco. Darnold, who is on the radar for the 2023 NFL Comeback Player of the Year, will be the QB2 according to statements that Shanahan made to KNBR radio.
“I do think he’s going to have a lot of success in this league,” Shanahan said regarding Trey Lance on KNBR radio. “It’s been a tough road for him because the times he has gotten an opportunity, he ended up getting hurt and missed that window and now he’s in this position and we’ll always try to do right for Trey.”
Opinion: Darnold over Lance is the right move
There are a lot of details that NFL bettors should be aware of with this announcement. Firstly, the 49ers made the right move. Last season Darnold, at times, did look like a QB that could start for a decent team. Someone who can at least hold Fort is what you want with a QB2. Darnold fits that bill more than Trey Lance. Regarding him, there is a matter of what comes next.
Three quarterbacks that are capable of starting in the NFL is a lot for one team to have. But last season, the 49ers needed all of the QBs that they could get. They had injuries with Trey Lance, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Brock Purdy that stretched them very thin. If they had made the Super Bowl, reportedly there was a plan to bring Philip Rivers back into the league after two years of retirement.
A lot of teams make do with one quarterback all season. There are plenty of teams where the QB2, let alone the QB3, doesn’t see a snap or doesn’t see a meaningful snap for the entire season. Last year’s pains in the QB position in ‘cisco might affect their decision-making.
Then again, they might just trade Trey Lance. On that matter, of course, the Trey Lance trade rumors or conjecture have already begun. Eric Moody, writing at ESPN on Wednesday, headlined “Fantasy football: Looking at potential trade destinations for Trey Lance.” Perhaps the ideal thing for San Francisco to do is trade him to a team that takes an injury of its own once the regular season starts. That would put San Francisco in a position of power in a trade.
Darnold a Long Shot for 2023 NFL Comeback Player of the Year
Another spin on the Sam Darnold news is that he is among those on the radar for the 2023 NFL Comeback Player of the Year. Unibet sportsbook has him at 50 to 1. The bet would be complicated at shorter odds. For Darnold to win the award lots of things have to go right.
Mainly, he would actually have to see playing time. As already stated, QB1s do actually run the table and take all snaps for some teams in some seasons. If Darnold got a chance, he would have to make something of it and keep it up. Then his resume would have to beat out the other contenders for the award. You can see how bettors should not be dabbling in this market without really long odds.
But Brock Purdy does have a bit of an injury history. Also, the story of a “comeback” fits Darnold. He faced adversity as a member of the New York Jets. In 2020, he went just 9-11 for TDs to INTs. In 2021, he was worse from that point of view in Carolina before he improved last season. Darnold isn’t a quitter.
But for those who like a fairy-tale ending, the favorite in this market remains Damar Hamlin. He is at -500 or 1 to 5 with Unibet. Hamlin is the favorite after suffering cardiac arrest on the field last season on a nationally televised Monday Night Football game. The odds of -500 on a season-long award are quite rare. You can see how the stage is already half set for Hamlin, perhaps making other players all the more difficult to take.
