Trey Lance responds to rumors linking him to 1 AFC team

Dec 19, 2021; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance (5) smiles after defeating the Atlanta Falcons at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports

Trey Lance’s future with the San Francisco 49ers is a bit murky, partly due to the quarterback’s own social media activity. He tried to clear up some of that speculation this week.

Lance said his post reacting to former 49ers director of player personnel Ran Carthon being named Tennessee Titans GM was meant to wish him luck, not to suggest that Lance wanted to follow him out the door. The quarterback told “The Q with Quincy Avery” podcast that he had not even been aware that the post sparked speculation until coach Kyle Shanahan joked about it with him.

“Me and Ran got close,” Lance said, via Gabe Fernandez of SFGate. “He’d bring his boys in, and I’d talk to his kids. For me, that was huge. It was like a shining light. Just getting to know someone’s family like that. I was super happy for him. The fingers crossed emoji wasn’t like ‘cross my fingers emoji, I want to be a Tennessee Titan.’ I love it here. I don’t want to be anywhere else. That’s my No. 1 used emoji too.”

Lance’s post sparked plenty of speculation, and a lot of people wondered if he was sending a message with it. Lance says that is not the case, though it is understandable why some read it the way they did.

For now, Lance is the 49ers’ No. 1 quarterback after Brock Purdy’s offseason surgery. However, he might face an uphill battle to keep the job once Purdy is healthy.