John Lynch: Trey Lance has to prove that he can stay healthy

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The 49ers have had several quarterback injury issues over the past few years, whether with Jimmy Garoppolo, Trey Lance or, more recently, Brock Purdy.

Garoppolo’s injury history was part of the reason the club came out and traded to select Lance.

During Wednesday’s season-ending press conference, general manager John Lynch was asked if there was anything the 49ers could do to find a solution to their injury problems or if it was something that was beyond the control of the club. When he did, he said something interesting about the team’s No.3 pick in 2021.

“I really think it’s a tough position to play in this league,” Lynch said. “I understand that there are players who have had incredible durability. Like Kyle [Shanahan] said earlier, I think Brock has been incredibly durable throughout his career. He’s gotten himself into an awkward situation where he’s trying to throw the ball downfield, and he’s got an NFL rusher pulling your arm the other way. It’s not going to hold up, so it stinks.

“Trey has had his issues and Trey has struggled here for the past two years. He’s obviously going to have to prove that he can stay healthy, but I know there were periods in my career early in my career where I struggled to stay healthy and then I spent eight years without missing a blink. So it happens sometimes. And yeah, I’m sure people are wondering, Jimmy had his issues, but believe me, it’s nothing with how we play our quarterbacks or anything.

“I think it’s just a coincidence and we look at everything, but I don’t think we have more of a problem than anyone else. I think it’s a difficult position in this league.

Lance only started four games in his two seasons and wasn’t supposed to start as a rookie. But he dealt with a knee injury in 2021 before breaking his ankle in the second week of this season.

At this point, the 49ers will seemingly be heading into 2023 with Lance and Purdy as their top quarterback picks — although Lance will likely have a head start for training camp as he will be available to take reps during the off-season program. Either way, the 49ers could definitely use a better injury chance