Steelers Somehow among Favorites to Trade for 49ers QB Trey Lance

The Pittsburgh Steelers are among the listed favorites to acquire San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance in a trade, according to odds posted Thursday by Bet Online.

I’ll pause and let you try to read that sentence a few more times before giving up at making any sense of it.

The 49ers made Lance, who they traded up to get with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, their third-string quarterback this week, placing him behind Brock Purdy and Sam Darnold on the depth chart, while it was reported that they are attempting to trade former North Dakota State star.

All of that makes sense. The top landing spots in the odds for Lance’s landing spot also make some level of sense, as well. 

The Minnesota Vikings (3/1) have an unsettled future with a potential opt out for Kirk Cousins after the season. The Atlanta Falcons (4/1) are starting 2022 third-round pick Desmond Ridder.  The Los Angeles Rams (4/1) seem poised for a full-on rebuild and there have been questions about Matt Stafford’s arm dating back to last season. The Miami Dolphins (5/1) should probably be interested in a better backup plan in case of another Tua Tagovailoa injury than Mike White.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6/1) are staring Baker Mayfield. The Las Vegas Raiders (9/1) have perennially injury Jimmy Garoppolo at the helm. Even the Green Bay Packers (12/1) should easily see Lance as an upgrade over current backup Sean Clifford.

Then, for some unknown reason, sit the Pittsburgh Steelers, sharing 12/1 odds with the Packers as supposedly the seventh-most likely team to acquire Lance.

The Steelers, who are starting their 2022 first-round pick, after a promising rookie season, and also have Mitch Trubisky and Mason Rudolph as backups — both of whom have been better than Darnold in their careers, the player that just beat Lance out for a backup job. (Career passer ratings: Trubisky 86.4, Rudolph 80.9, Darnold 78.2.)

Lance has potential, but they don’t need potential. That’s why they’re playing Pickett. They don’t need a backup, either. In fact, there’s been some speculation that other teams might be reaching out about trading for Mason Rudolph.

I’m not even sure the Steelers would claim Lance and his contract if he was on waivers, let alone trade anything of value for him. Maybe they’d play him at wide receiver?