It's Trey Lance Time as 49ers Become NFC West's Biggest Wild Card

Rookie San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance might have to make his first career start if veteran Jimmy Garoppolo's injured calf keeps him out of the lineup in Week 5, and that's expected to be the case.

But the time has come for the 49ers to make the transition from Garoppolo to Lance anyway. 

Prior to getting hurt in the third quarter of Sunday's 28-21 loss to division rivals Seattle Seahawks, Garoppolo had a mere 79.1 passer rating on the day and the 49ers had just seven points. Jimmy G was by no means a huge liability, but he again wasn't much of an asset for a team that needs more big plays from its quarterback. 

Prior to Sunday's loss, Garoppolo had completed just three deep passes all year and his 35.1 passer rating on those deep shots ranked dead-last in the NFL. He was also averaging just 3.5 air yards per pass attempt, ranking near the bottom of the league in that metric.

And we shouldn't be surprised by that because Jimmy G has never been an elite playmaker. The 49ers made a Super Bowl run two years ago because their defense was awesome and their offense was innovative and well-balanced, not because Garoppolo was some sort of star. They also didn't have another enticing quarterback on the roster then. 

That has changed, as has the fact that the 49ers don't appear to be equipped to go on a run in the mighty NFC West just on the power of Kyle Shanahan's run-oriented offense and a star-studded, but banged-up, defense.

San Francisco is lucky to be 2-2. The Niners nearly blew a huge lead against the Detroit Lions in Week 1, looked flat in a Week 2 victory over the lowly Philadelphia Eagles and have now allowed 28-plus points in back-to-back home losses to fellow NFC Super Bowl contenders Seattle and the Green Bay Packers. 

They now sit in last place in the West, two games back of the red-hot Arizona Cardinals and a game behind the Los Angeles Rams. They desperately need a jolt, because it won't take long for them to fall so far back of Arizona and/or L.A. that this could quickly become a second consecutive lost season for them. 

And while I understand why Shanahan and Co. decided to bring Lance along slowly considering he entered this season as a 21-year-old with almost no recent tape coming out of the Missouri Valley Conference, he looks ready for a much more significant role after a month of learning in a backup role. 

On just 30 total passes and rushes, Lance has generated nearly as many touchdowns (four) as Garoppolo has (six) on 133. He completed just nine of 18 passes Sunday, but he averaged a strong 8.7 yards per attempt anyway. He led two touchdown drives and hit Deebo Samuel on a deep ball that went for a 76-yard score, and he was also extremely effective with his legs (rushing seven times for 41 yards). 

There are quite simply a lot of things Lance can do that Garoppolo can't, which has to excite Shanahan as a play-caller. 

The 49ers can't afford to use a less-than-fully-healthy Garoppolo next week in Arizona. A loss there would be crushing, and a toe-to-toe battle between Lance and Kyler Murray would be a lot more fun anyway. That alone isn't a reason to start a guy, but it's icing on the cake. Plus, there has always been a connection between fun and winning, and the 49ers have been far from fun in 2021. 

There will undoubtedly be growing pains as Lance continues to adapt to the pro game, but the good has already greatly outweighed the bad, and the 49ers have the talent and experience to compensate for a lot of that. 

In fact, we're nearly at a point at which the Niners have nothing to lose. Might as well see if Lance can right this ship in a critical upcoming stretch against Arizona, the Indianapolis Colts, the Chicago Bears, the Cards again and the Rams. 

Garoppolo hopes he'll be out "just a couple of weeks," but nothing's guaranteed for the injury-prone 29-year-old. As long as Lance continues to make progress during that period, it won't make any sense to go back to Jimmy G when he's healthy again.

It's time for a new era at quarterback in San Francisco. 

Brad Gagnon has covered the NFL for Bleacher Report since 2012. Follow him on Twitter: @Brad_Gagnon.