Why did Cowboys trade for Trey Lance? How 49ers got it wrong - ESPN

Editor's note: This piece was updated Friday night, after the 49ers traded Trey Lance to the Cowboys. It was originally published Friday morning at 6:30 a.m. ET.

The Trey Lance era in San Francisco is over before it even began. What felt like a dramatic declaration of intent from one of the league's best franchises in March 2021 ended meekly on a depth chart Wednesday and with a trade Friday. After the 49ers confirmed they intend to use Sam Darnold as the primary backup to second-year quarterback Brock Purdy, they dealt Lance to the Cowboys for a fourth-round pick.

In the course of 12 months and after playing just five competitive quarters of football, Lance went from being the team's quarterback of the future to a third-stringer, trade candidate and then off the roster. The trade that was supposed to signal San Francisco's future turned out to be one of the worst deals in recent memory.

Before we get to what happened with the trade, think for a moment about what has happened in Lance's life since he posted a nearly flawless 2019 season at North Dakota State. At 19 years old, he ran for 1,100 yards and threw 28 touchdown passes without a single interception, and the Bison went 16-0 to win the FCS national title. Even allowing for the level of play, it had to have been one of the most impressive redshirt freshman seasons in college football history.

What happened next is hard to believe. A global pandemic shut down the world and limited Lance to one game in 2020. He declared for the draft and was selected by the 49ers at No. 3 overall — they gave up a huge haul to move up the board — but a preseason injury to his right index finger prevented him from getting consistent reps in practice in 2021. He started two games as an