With Trey Lance returning to Levi's Stadium this weekend, does his knowledge of the 49ers give the Cowboys any significant advantages in this blockbuster matchup of NFC powerhouses?
49ers general manager John Lynch isn't worried about it. During an interview on KNBR's "Murph & Mac Show" on Friday, Lynch dispelled the notion that Lance's inside information poses any serious threat to the 49ers' chances this weekend.
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"You know there is information you can share," Lynch said. "My experience with that as a player is it tends to screw you up more than it does help ya. This isn't the Houston Astros over there banging a trash can for fastballs or breaking balls, he can't do that over there. Now, everything is through the headset. I think the closest thing to it back in the day was when coordinators actually used to signal things in, you could glean some things, and people did. One organization in particular, well."
Lynch reiterated the value of such information used to be more useful than it is in today's NFL, before explaining that the insight into individual matchups is a much more valuable resource than anything scheme-related.
"There was more you could glean," Lynch added. "I do know that playing the quarterback position he has probably been more privy to the scheme thoughts and all that. But I don't think there's a whole lot.
"We've got Anthony Brown on our defense who spent seven years in Dallas. Do we try to glean? Sure, yes, you have some questions. But that's more about individual personnel than scheme. If you get caught up in trying to guess things in scheme, maybe a code word here or there can help you. But it's not something we are worried about and I would bet it's not something they have spent much time focusing on."
San Francisco 49ers
Lynch then shared a personal story from his time with the Denver Broncos, providing a first-hand account of how being consumed with the guessing game can be counterproductive to on-field success.
"I gave Mike Shanahan a hard time because one time we were playing the Indianapolis Colts, and we had studied long and hard," Lynch shared. "There was something that Peyton Manning did, 'Apple, apple, apple.' I guarantee you it's a run. I came flying up from the middle of the field because 'Apple' was supposed to be a run, and a post went over my head. Thankfully it was a long foul ball. It was usually Mike with that red face staring at me, it was me with the red face. 'Don't you ever tell me something like that again,' after you've had some experiences with that stuff, just play the game. Do your thing because you get caught up in guessing, it can go bad in a hurry."
Lance spent two-plus seasons with the 49ers and assuredly has a solid grasp on what the teams' strengths and weaknesses are, given his proximity to the team on a daily basis. How much that will assist Dallas remains to be seen. Based on Lynch's comments, it's not something the 49ers are losing sleep over as they prepare for this Sunday night showdown.
Adding another wrinkle into all of this was the 49ers' Friday afternoon acquisition of former Cowboys defensive end Randy Gregory, who spent seven years with the team before signing with the Denver Broncos in 2022.