The 49ers traded three first-round picks and a third-rounder to the Dolphins in 2021 to move up to select Trey Lance with the No. 3 overall pick. While shopping the quarterback two years later, the 49ers expected to get little in return.
None of the early offers the 49ers received for Lance included a fourth-round pick.
“It wasn’t anywhere close,” General Manager John Lynch said, via Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Then, the Cowboys called, and owner Jerry Jones said they wanted Lance so badly they weren’t hanging up the phone. The fourth-rounder Dallas offered San Francisco was a “little better than we anticipated,” coach Kyle Shanahan said.
Shanahan said multiple teams were interested in Lance.
Lynch did not indicate whether the 49ers would have kept Lance had the Cowboys not offered what they offered, but in a radio interview Thursday, Lynch indicated “the most likely option” was for Lance to remain in San Francisco.
“The Cowboys came up big,” Lynch said after the trade. “And I think that’s an indication that they’re excited to have him. And we’re excited for Trey’s new opportunity.”
