Trey Lance came into the NFL as a controversial pick from day one in 2021, when he was drafted third overall as the #1 pick of the 49ers. Three years later, the quarterback is just as polarizing as ever.
Lance's latest roller-coaster performance happened against the Chargers in the Cowboy's final preseason game, and you'd be hard-pressed to find a better example of a good news, bad news affair.
Dallas's third-string quarterback was incredibly productive, throwing for 323 yards and a TD while running for another 90 yards, but he also threw a remarkable five interceptions as part of his busy evening. The Cowboys lost the game, 26-19, which doesn't matter much other than it offers proof that it's tough to win with high turnover numbers.
Trey Lance finishes off an eventful preseason
For those new to the Trey Lance quarterback adventure, he struggled out of the gate with San Francisco and was eventually benched and then injured, which only served to compound the problem that he didn't get a lot of college reps at North Dakota State.
Lance quickly became San Francisco's forgotten man, and he was finally moved to Dallas for a fourth-round pick. The trade seemed slightly controversial at the time given that Dallas already had a productive backup in Cooper Rush, but Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was also lauded for picking up a distressed asset for a relatively low price.
Dallas's third-string quarterback has flashed during the season, and what was particularly impressive about his prior performances against the Rams and Raiders is that he was turnover-free. Lance's ability to play a clean game is a major issue in his success going forward, so yesterday's Charger debacle represents a significant step back.
For better or worse, Lance won't see any further action in Dallas this year, and if he does it likely won't be a good thing. Rush has been solid when Prescott's been hurt, which means Lance remains a "break glass in case of emergency" option. He still doesn't have enough reps to make good decisions against opponents who aren't working from preseason game plans, and what Lance really needs at this point is live action.
Jerry Jones gets grilled about Lance's future
Lance's ability to keep both teams in the game at once led to a serious grilling for Jerry Jones, who faces major questions about the quarterback's future going into Tuesday's roster cuts.
Specifically, Dallas is paying Lance approximately $5 million a year to be a third-string quarterback if they decide to give him a roster spot. Very few teams will be keeping three QBs, so that decision would go very much against the grain if the Cowboys ultimately make that call.
To complicate the issue, Lance will be a free agent after this season, and he's probably shown enough for any number of teams to bring him in for a look. Rush will almost certainly get the call if Dak Prescott goes down, which makes the logic of keeping Lance even more questionable. He's already got contract issues with Dak, CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons, so Jones already has plenty of controversy on his plate.
Jones didn't hedge on last week's call to give Lance a roster spot, but he did say he "saw some things you'd like to have back." He knows that his third-string quarterback still needs plenty of NFL reps to develop his potential, but Jones also knows that they're not coming in Dallas. The only question now is whether the occasionally mercurial owner changes his mind this week and looks to find a trade partner willing to give him good value for Lance.