Trey Lance was demoted to 49ers third-string quarterback, traded by the team that moved up to draft him No. 3 overall two years ago and then introduced by the Dallas Cowboys all within a matter of a week.
That can be a lot to handle for any 23-year-old, but 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan commended the young quarterback for how he's handled the situation.
“I mean, I try not to pay attention to outside of here," Shanahan told reporters Wednesday when asked about the aftermath of the trade. "I try to deal with the people in here that I have to deal with. I have felt very good about that. I did see Trey. I was happy watching him actually while I was eating lunch with his press conference in Dallas, and Trey is as real as it gets and that's how he talks in here.
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"That's how he is every day. So, it's cool to see him handle that the right way and he did seem genuinely kind of happy and I feel he's in a good position to move on and do better there."
Another former 49ers quarterback also made headlines for his recent comments, as Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo called the Lance trade a "weird situation," and agreed that the team's handling of quarterbacks over the last few years has been "messy."
Shanahan didn't care too much about Garoppolo's remarks, though, and his response to Lance's comments had a much different tone.
Lance asked for a trade after finding out he lost the backup job to veteran quarterback Sam Darnold, and would go into the 2023 season as the No. 3 option. Two days later, San Francisco sent Lance to Dallas for a fourth-round draft pick.
San Francisco 49ers
While the news was devastating to some for a number of reasons, Lance was happy to hear the news as he was preparing to play in San Francisco's preseason finale last Friday.
"I really tried to not expect anything one way or another, but I can say that when I heard it was the Cowboys, I had a big smile on my face," Lance told reporters in Dallas on Tuesday. "I'm very excited to be here. … I believe that everything happens for a reason. I believe I'm here for a reason and, regardless of what it is, I'm here to try and find a way to help this team."
Lance joins a Dallas QB room with veteran Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush, who will be the backup in 2023. More than anything, though, Lance is ready for a fresh start.
And like Lance, Shanahan hopes to move on from the sticky situation and focus on the season.