Trey Lance’s ankle injury sidelined him for the 2022 season, but it’s not expected to impact his availability at all for the 2023 campaign.
Lance, who had a second surgery on his ankle that required him to go back into walking boot, told reporters Tuesday in the locker room that he expects to remove the boot the first week of February, and fully cleared by the end of the month. The former No. 3 overall pick also anticipates being 100 percent for OTAs per ESPN’s Nick Wagoner.
Getting a full, healthy offseason in could be key for Lance, who’s entering a crucial year in his NFL career. Brock Purdy’s elbow injury could open the door for a ton of offseason reps for the inexperienced QB.
Purdy is supposedly the frontrunner for the QB1 job, but it’s not out of the realm of possibilities that Lance turns the race for that spot into a real battle if he puts up a good showing in OTAs and any portions of camp that Purdy might miss.
It remains to be seen how good Lance’s mobility is post-injury, but the fact he’s on track to be a full-go for OTAs is a very good sign for him and the 49ers.
