If you think Sam Darnold is the answer for the San Francisco 49ers, you’d be wrong. He isn’t “the” answer. He is, however, a short-term answer before the main answer, Brock Purdy, returns to full health.
Purdy is the 49ers’ best option at quarterback when healthy. He earned that status by leading the Niners to the NFC Championship Game this past January. The real question we are dealing with here is whether Darnold is the better option than Trey Lance, a quarterback the Niners bet big on by taking him with the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL draft.
One could make the argument that because Lance represents such a huge investment on the part of the San Francisco organization, the 49ers need to give Lance every last possible chance to succeed or — at the very least — show what he can do. Some people will surely say that if Kyle Shanahan puts Darnold ahead of Lance on the depth chart, the 49ers are giving up on Lance way too early.
To be sure, Lance has not worked out the way the Niners hoped. However, his developmental arc can’t be force-marched or sped up. It is what it is. Darnold, who has dealt with terrible situations with the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers, has finally found a good NFL organization. If Brock Purdy can thrive within the Niners’ system, Darnold can at least be a game manager who allows San Francisco to win games with its physical line play and its defensive strength.
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