Quarterback Trey Lance is certainly hoping "a third time is a charm" when it comes to finding a long-term home, and the aim is to secure such under head coach Jim Harbaugh and the Los Angeles Chargers.
The San Francisco 49ers' top pick from the 2021 NFL Draft, who ultimately flamed out amid injury and serious inconsistency, failed to revitalize his career after being jettisoned to the Dallas Cowboys in 2023, which led him to a free-agent deal this offseason with the Bolts.
So far, so (not) good.
Already, a video surfaced of Lance vastly underthrowing a target in non-contested practice, and now there are further suggestions of the former No. 3 overall pick failing to show much development.
It's year five.
Chargers learning what 49ers, Cowboys already learned about Trey Lance
The raw-but-promising Lance had flash moments during his brief Niners tenure, but his uncanny collegiate rushing abilities didn't translate over to the NFL level, and the ability to stay within the pocket and deliver modestly accurate throws never materialized ever. From his days at North Dakota State, the quarterback was much more used to throwing on the move.
San Francisco began experiencing this to the extreme in 2022, which was supposed to be Lance's first year as a starter, except a devastating ankle injury early in the season put an end to that experiment.
Now, Los Angeles is finding out the same issues that turned Lance into a draft bust, and one Chargers reporter highlighted such an issue from the Bolts' minicamp sessions.
"Rookie safety Jaylen Jones picked off an ill-advised off-platform throw from quarterback Trey Lance, who has been trading off with (D.J.) Uiagalelei as the third-string quarterback," described The Athletic's Daniel Popper, via The Landry Hat. "Rookie right end Oronde Gadsden was coming open on a corner route. Lance was drifting to his left, and the ball was severely underthrown."
These are the kinds of moments that ensured Lance would do no better than the third-string signal-caller with the 49ers in 2023, especially amid quarterback Brock Purdy's ascent, and the same problems plagued Lance in Dallas, too.
While training camp is still weeks away, it sure appears as if the one-time top-three pick with so much hype is now poised to enter a desperate fight to even secure a QB3 role on L.A.'s roster.
Read more from Niner Noise