49ers' Trey Lance: Cleared to return

Lance (knee) has no injury designation for Sunday's game in Chicago, Cam Inman of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

The rookie will return to his role as the backup quarterback, potentially getting some snaps in the red zone and/or in special packages designed to take advantage of his running ability. Given Jimmy Garoppolo's poor performance this season, Lance seems increasingly likely to make additional starts as a rookie, after filling in for the injured veteran in a Week 5 loss to Arizona. It was in that game where Lance sprained his knee, forcing a one-game absence even after the 49ers' Week 6 bye. In any case, he's back for Week 8 at Chicago.