The San Francisco 49ers have made their intentions at the quarterback position very clear this offseason. Should Brock Purdy be healthy enough to play, he would be the starter once games started.

With Purdy receiving clearance to be on the field before training camp got underway, he is the leader in the clubhouse for the job. He certainly earned it with his performance during the 2022 campaign, going from Mr. Irrelevant to starting in the NFC Championship Game.

While certainly an unorthodox journey, it is one that the 49ers are more than happy to be a part of. This only became possible because the team’s starter heading into 2022, Trey Lance, suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 2.

Lance, the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, spent the entire 2022 offseason preparing to take over as the starter. Head coach Kyle Shanahan revamped the entire offense to fit his skill set, going from the pocket-passing Jimmy Garoppolo to the uber-athletic Lance, who relies on his legs to get the job done.

This offseason, he has reportedly been playing very well while taking first-team reps with Purdy sidelined. Well enough that some fans have clamored for him to be the starter once the regular season rolled around.

In the opinion of one 49ers reporter, that is something Shanahan didn’t want to gain more steam. Grant Cohn shared a conspiracy theory of his, via JPA Football on Twitter, which was that the 49ers’ game plan for their preseason game was adjusted so that Lance wouldn’t have another strong showing and create a quarterback controversy.

That is quite a theory, as it would be wild for a head coach to purposely sabotage a player in any game setting. If the 49ers don’t plan on keeping Lance long-term tanking his value further isn’t going to help them, as trade packages for him will be even weaker than they already may be.