It'd be Brock Purdy in and Trey Lance out if Jeff Garcia were running the 49ers ... the former San Francisco star tells TMZ Sports he's all-in on Mr. Irrelevant in 2023!!!
Purdy took over the QB1 reins after Lance and Jimmy Garappolo got injured during the 2022 season, and he instantly became a hero ... winning nine games, and nearly leading the team to the Super Bowl.
However, the 23-year-old rookie suffered an elbow injury in the NFC Championship Game ... leaving his status as the future starter in question with Lance looming in the same QB room.
But, when we got Garcia out at the "GameOn Super Bash hosted by Babes and Ballers" Super Bowl event in Arizona this week ... he made it clear, if Purdy's healthy, he'd be his hands down main guy under center.
"Purdy runs the offense the way [Kyle] Shanahan coaches it," Garcia said. "They're not trying to fabricate plays and create like they were for Trey Lance."
"You gotta go with the guy that's going to make the right decisions, run the offense the way it's supposed to be run and take advantage of the weapons around you."
In fact, Garcia said he has so much confidence in Purdy ... he told us he thinks the Niners should consider trading Lance, since the 22-year-old is young, athletic, and has value.
"There may be people that are interested in that," Garcia said. "What can you get for him to make your team stronger, more solid? It's something you gotta look into."
But, Garcia also noted there is value to keeping Lance on the roster ... telling us the Niners learned the hard way this year that you can never have enough bodies at the position.