The San Francisco 49ers quarterback situation is stable on the field thanks to Brock Purdy producing one great performance after another. However, things didn’t always look so rosy for the Bay Area team. 

The Niners’ starting and backup quarterbacks were ruled out of action in September and December respectively. So, to see the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft (262nd overall) slot in and play so well was great for San Francisco fans, especially as it was reported that the Niners’ starting quarterback suffered another setback in his recovery from injury.

Trey Lance Underwent a Second Surgery

In late September, the 49ers’ starting quarterback, Trey Lancebroke his fibula and required deltoid and syndesmotic ligament surgery. It was expected that he would be out for up to six months.

The backup quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo injured his foot in early December against the Dolphins and has been out of action since. Reports say that he is not fully walking yet and that the earliest he could be back in action is for the NFC title game on 29 January. 

Garoppolo has a better chance of making a backup appearance in the Super Bowl (12 February), provided the 49ers get that far.

Reports that were later also confirmed by the 49ers said that Trey Lance underwent a second surgery on his repaired right ankle. Fortunately, the procedure was a success and it won’t affect his preparations for the 2023 NFL season.

Lance Will Return for the OTA’s

The 49ers said that the second surgery was performed to remove hardware that was placed inside Lance’s foot in September during the original procedure.

The Bay Area team noted that the location of the fracture was the reason why the hardware had to be placed close to a tendon in the quarterback’s ankle. However, because the hardware was so close to Trey Lance’s ankle, it caused irritation during his rehabilitation.

The San Francisco consulted various experts about what course of action to take next and decided that it was best if the hardware was removed surgically. That meant Lance had to go under the knife again.

Fortunately, the team confirmed that the procedure went well. That means Lance would now continue recovering and rehabilitating and is expected to return in time for the OTAs.