SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Trey Lance may have lost the No. 2 quarterback competition to Sam Darnold, but the real reason he’s in a state of limbo with the San Francisco 49ers is Brock Purdy.

At this time last year, Lance was the team’s unquestioned starter, the player Kyle Shanahan would try to build up over the course of the season, and the best bet to lead the offense for the foreseeable future.

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Then Purdy cut in line.

All it took was three games in December to convince Shanahan that he was the better option. First up was the Week 13 game against the Miami Dolphins when Purdy relieved injured Jimmy Garoppolo in the first quarter and the 49ers offense — humming at that point in the season — didn’t miss a beat.

The following week, Purdy not only had the pressure of being the starter on a playoff-bound team, his opponent was Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The rookie didn’t blink. He had 185 yards at halftime, Brady had 78.

Perhaps the most convincing outing came four days later when Purdy gutted his way through a painful rib injury for a road win against the Seattle Seahawks, one that gave the 49ers a division title.

Whereas Lance was all projection — with enough repetitions, he could become a winning quarterback — Purdy left no doubt. He immediately showed Shanahan everything he wanted to see: toughness, quick decision-making and aggressive throws.

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“Whoever would have been here, with the way Brock looked, we were gonna go with Brock (as this year’s starter),” Shanahan said on KNBR radio Wednesday. “And that was the reality of it.”

As a result, Purdy got the lion’s share of the snaps this summer while Lance and Darnold fought for practice-field scraps. Lance, whose first two seasons were sidetracked by injuries, no longer got the resources he needed to get better. The 49ers turned their focus from Lance and put it on Purdy.

“This is more about how Brock played in his seven games (last season) … and how good Sam has looked,” Shanahan said. “They’ve both looked good. But we do have to make a decision here. And you only get so many reps at it. And we feel that, starting about 10 days ago, Sam really separated himself and we’ve gotta keep it real in that way.”

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Ten days ago, the 49ers were in Las Vegas to play the Raiders. Lance got off to a slow start — three three-and-out series — while Darnold’s first official pass was a 37-yard strike to Ronnie Bell. Lance threw two near interceptions in that game and had another near miss Saturday when a Denver Broncos linebacker jumped a fourth-quarter pass but couldn’t hang on.

Darnold technically threw an interception when a pass slipped through Bell’s hands into those of a Broncos defender. Otherwise, he hasn’t put the ball in harm’s way in the preseason, his most conspicuous flaw his first four years in the league. That care has been reflected in practice as well. He’s thrown two interceptions this summer.

Still, Shanahan stressed during his radio interview that he wants Lance to stick around in 2023 and he said he plans to play him, after Purdy and Darnold are finished for the night, in Friday’s preseason finale.

Having layers of quarterback depth has been paramount for the 49ers in 2022 after they literally ran out of them last season. But he also said the team would “do right for Trey” — that is, the 49ers would explore trade options. If that happens, Brandon Allen, who is the team’s fourth option, likely would make the initial 53-man roster.

What the 49ers gave up to take Lance — three first-round draft picks — underscores the magnitude of Wednesday’s quarterback news.

Trey Lance’s trade value is an extremely complicated issue, writes @jeffphowe.

The Athletic spoke to high-ranking decision-makers from eight NFL teams to assess Lance’s trade value, and opinions varied.

What they're saying ⤵️

— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) August 23, 2023

A franchise that badly whiffs like that has no business being an annual contender. But the fact that Purdy, the last pick in his draft class, has surpassed Lance, the third pick in his class, speaks to a theme for the 49ers: They’ve been able to cover up early-round mistakes with later-round gems.

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In 2017, the team drafted Reuben Foster in the first round thinking he’d be its middle linebacker of the future. He was cut a year later, but the 49ers never truly felt the sting of that bad decision because Fred Warner, a third-round pick in 2018, turned out to be better.

There have been similar instances at running back. Elijah Mitchell (sixth round) outplayed Trey Sermon (third round) in 2021. Undrafted Jordan Mason did the same with Tyrion Davis-Price (third round) last season.

At cornerback, 2021 fifth-rounder Deommodore Lenoir has been better than 2021 third-rounder Ambry Thomas. And it appears as if Bell, a seventh-round pick this year, could be more productive than last year’s third-round receiver, Danny Gray.

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In that way, it seemed fitting that on the day Lance was demoted to third-string quarterback, Purdy went 12-of-12 in the 49ers’ practice. His afternoon was a lot like his December game against the Seahawks — a short pass here, a medium one there, then another quick throw and finally a deep ball to George Kittle.

Lance, meanwhile, was absent.

Shanahan said the intense spotlight Lance has been under, coupled with the fact the 49ers had an ultra-light practice Wednesday, prompted him to give the quarterback the afternoon off.

“I knew that was hard on him,” Shanahan said of Lance getting the news Wednesday morning. “We had such a light practice today and watching how Trey was when we talked, we just thought it was better. ‘Hey, take the day off, get away a little bit, clear your head some and we’ll talk later in the afternoon. And we’ll get you back in here tomorrow.'”

(Photo of Brock Purdy and Trey Lance: Jed Jacobsohn / Associated Press)

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