49ers: Could Trey Lance’s finger injury force him to miss Week 1?

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance might not be available in Week 1 because of a finger injury he suffered in the final preseason game.

Trey Lance may look like the future for the 49ers, but he might have to wait to make his debut.

The rookie quarterback suffered a finger injury against the Raiders on Sunday.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan said Lance has a small “chip” in his finger, per Adam Schefter. The injury will keep him out for a week.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance is in doubt for Week 1

The 49ers open the season in 13 days in Detroit. Theoretically, Lance should be good to go for that first game. He’ll be able to take snaps again on the Monday before the Lions game on the current timetable.

However, it might not be a cut-and-dry recovery. Dr. Nirav Pandya, an associate professor at UC San Francisco and the Director of Sports Medicine at Benioff Children’s Hospital, tweeted about the complications of his return.

Losing practice time won’t help Lance, that’s for certain.

Of course, there is a question about how much he would be involved in Week 1 either way. Shanahan has not outright named a Week 1 starter, but he’s indicated from the beginning that Jimmy Garoppolo would likely hold the job. There has been no rush to hand Lance the keys to the car.

Things have gotten more intriguing recently with the head coach trying out a two-quarterback system. Against the Raiders, both Lance and Garappolo featured in a mix-and-match approach.

The injury to Lance might scuttle the plan to play both quarterbacks if Shanahan wasn’t completely convinced to stay on that path. He could be healed up just early enough for it to be part of the game plan.