Tag: Trey Lance

Commanders will not face Cowboys QB Dak Prescott in Week 12

Dak Prescott is reportedly done for the season, meaning he will miss both games vs. Commanders.

The Dallas Cowboys are struggling. At 3-5, they are three-and-a-half games behind the Washington Commanders in the NFC East. The Cowboys have dealt with injuries and inconsistent play and look quite a bit different than they did one year ago.

Dallas owner Jerry Jones famously said the Cowboys were “all-in” for 2024 and proceeded to do nothing in free agency. Dallas lost multiple key players and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.

This season, the Cowboys have lost star edge rusher Micah Parsons and quarterback Dak Prescott, among others this season. While Parsons is expected back, Prescott’s season is apparently over.

On Saturday, Adam Schefter of ESPN revealed that Prescott was undergoing season-ending surgery for his partially torn hamstring.

With Prescott potentially out for the season, he will miss both games against the Commanders. Washington and Dallas meet in Weeks 12 and 18.

Cooper Rush is expected to be Dallas’ new starting quarterback. Rush has played well in the past and has led the Cowboys to a win over the Commanders in the past. Dallas could use this as an opportunity to see former top-five pick Trey Lance.

Cowboys Dak Prescott out for remainder of Falcons game, will Trey Lance play?

Dak Prescott has left the game and will not return. Who is his backup?

Things have gone from bad to worse for the Dallas Cowboys in their game against the Atlanta Falcons. Down two scores, the Cowboys will now try to mount a comeback without their field general, Dak Prescott.

On a play in the third quarter, Prescott injured his hamstring on a throw to the sideline, unable to step through the motion. After being tended to on the sideline during the ensuing Atlanta drive (in which they scored a touchdown), Prescott was ruled out.

Cooper Rush will takeover for the remainder of the game.This also means that Trey Lance, the emergency third quarterback, has a chance to enter his first game as a Dallas Cowboy since being acquired last offseason.

Rush would have to leave because of injury in order for Lance to be allowed to play the game.

Prescott’s day finishes 18 of 24 for 133 yards and a touhdown toss to running back Rico Dowdle. Prescott had a 101.6 passer rating for the game, his highest since the Week 4 win over New York.

He also ran several times in this game, including a team season-high 22-yard jaunt in the first half.

If Rush can’t bring the Cowboys’ back, they will fall to 3-5 on the season with back-to-back division games against the Philadelphia Eagles and Houston Texans up next, with both contests at AT&T Stadium. The Cowboys are 0-3 at home this season.

Jalen Hurts reacts to the benchings of young QBs; Lack of patience around NFL

Jalen Hurts reacts to the benchings of young quarterbacks; Lack of patience around NFL

Jalen Hurts was drafted in 2020 to be a backup quarterback in the NFL. Still, after his improvement and Carson Wentz’s benching, the former Oklahoma signal-caller has developed into one of the best in the league.

After an Eagles practice, Hurts recently shared his thoughts on the frequent benching of young quarterbacks (Anthony Richardson, Bryce Young) in the NFL and teams’ overall impatience with their development. He emphasized that the transition to the league can be incredibly challenging, with a steep learning curve that not all QBs can navigate immediately.

“I wasn’t supposed to be the guy I am today Hurts said via Zach Berman. Nobody expected that. But took advantage of my opportunity, and that’s what I encourage everyone to do regardless. I have a ton of respect for Tom Brady. And you hear him talk a lot of times, taking advantage of your moment. Typically there’s a different leash there, the earlier you’re picked. But nonetheless, nothing’s guaranteed and nothing’s promised. But you have to take advantage of every opportunity that comes.

“And sometimes, adversity builds the appropriate callouses for you to be able to forge a new path and withstand different storms that come your way.”

Over his first two seasons, Hurts had a 59% completion percentage with 4,063 yards passing, 21 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, 1,056 rushing yards, and a Super Bowl appearance.

A two-time Pro Bowler, Hurts completed 65.4 percent of his passes for 3,858 yards and a career-high 23 touchdowns in 17 regular season games last season. He also added 15 rushing touchdowns, setting a new NFL record for most rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in a single season, matching Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen.

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Bye Week Fix: Is Cowboys’ secret weapon on offense wasting away on shelf?

When the former No. 1 offense in the league is struggling to score 20 points in a game, thinking needs to escape the box. | From @KDDrummondNFL

The Dallas Cowboys have the opportunity to do something to fix their stumbling offense, but they won’t. They didn’t have the foresight to prepare for it, because they lack imagination. The organization, as a whole, has become timid and scared to think outside of the box. It’s seen in how they approach free agency, never taking a financial risk anymore, much less rolling the dice on a situation that could blow up.

And it seems to be part of the fabric of their coaching staff; with their inability to think outside the box. Dallas spent the offseason seeing if they could potentially let Dak Prescott walk, by gauging what Trey Lance could provide under center. In the end, they inked Prescott to the richest deal in NFL history, and because of their straight-line thinking, may have missed the chance to turn Trey Lance into their version of Taysom Hill.

Hill, the 6-foot-2, 221-pound offensive weapon in New Orleans, came into the league as a quarterback but has morphed into so much more than that. He plays tight end, wideout, running back and quarterback, and he’s been used to great effect over the years as someone who is capable of taking the pounding. The Saints have never truly given Hill a starting opportunity at QB, though he has several starts under his belt.

And the truth is, with Prescott locked in and Lance a free agent at the end of the season, there’s no starting job waiting for Lance at any point in his career. At least not in Dallas. So why weren’t the coaching staff prepared to use his considerable gifts in ways that could diversify the Cowboys’ offense?

Let the 6-foot-4, 226-pound Lance run. Let Lance play some read-option snaps. Let Lance run a few patterns. The window has certainly been missed in giving him real opportunity to learn those roles for 2024, but that doesn’t mean that after his disastrous final preseason performance that shouldn’t have immediately clicked in the heads of the coaching staff.

Perhaps it did. Perhaps starting with Week 8’s post-bye date with the San Francisco 49ers there will be some level of usage for a player the club spent a fourth-round pick on and is paying $5.3 million as inactive insurance insurance every week.

But the Cowboys have a supreme athlete who could cause defensive coordinators to spend some time preparing for and aren’t using him. That seems like malpractice.

Can the Cowboys trade Trey Lance, or is he in Dallas for the year?

Do the Cowboys have options with QB Trey Lance and what’s the likelihood of those options happening in 2024? | From @ReidDHanson

The Cowboys dedicated much of their efforts this summer to testing quarterback prospect Trey Lance. The former No. 3 overall pick was picked up in a late August trade with rival San Francisco. Before training camp little was seen of the North Dakota State gunslinger.

Lance, 24, lacked experience since entering the NFL in 2021. It was clear he had the tools but unknown if he knew how to use those tools effectively. In order to find out the Cowboys had to throw him into the fire, both in training camp and in preseason games. And they did just that, giving Lance heavy reps in practice and the lion’s share of work in the preseason.

Lance didn’t light the world on fire in either regard. In practices it was obvious he was the third-best QB in camp and in games he looked a fringe NFL player. He frequently flashed the same traits that made him a top pick, but he also reaffirmed he wasn’t close to being ready to play winning football either.

The Cowboys are in a pickle of sorts because Lance is scheduled to count $5,310,717 against the salary cap, which is more than what most teams want to dedicate to the QB3 position. Lance is still valuable in some regard as a developmental piece, but it would have to be on the right team for the right dollar amount.

The Cowboys have to answer whether or not that’s in Dallas under his scheduled cost or if there are alternatives. Based on Jerry Jones’ comments, he’s committed to the cause, but words aren’t actions and things could be happening behind the scenes.

“Certainly, we plan on him being on our roster, for sure,” Jones said of his young QB. 

If the Cowboys are open to the idea of trading Lance, these are exactly the type of statements Jones would be expected to say. A trading team doesn’t want to float the idea the player in question might get cut loose. But since Dallas would receive zero relief by cutting Lance, it’s safe to assume Jones was being truthful and Lance’s spot on the 53-man roster is fairly safe. 

Teams with ugly QB situations in 2024, like the Vikings, Panthers and Raiders, might be interested in kicking Lance’s tires, so to speak, but trade compensation and his scheduled salary are not attractive handcuffs. The likelihood of anyone offering anything more than a conditional pick for Lance is pretty slim so he’s likely to stay on as an expensive developmental prospect for the duration of his deal.

Lance isn’t much of a tradeable asset nor is he a viable backup option. He’s a high-priced depth piece likely to stay in Dallas and unlikely to see the field again this year.

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NFL last-minute rule change won’t impact Cowboys’ strategic roster approach to QB

The NFLPA changed a rule at the last minute, but because of the Cowboys’ unique QB situation they were exempt in a different way. | From @KDDrummondNFL

“And I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren’t for you meddling kids!”

That’s may be what several NFL head coaches and front office teams are saying to the NFLPA after a rule change was pulled out from underneath them like the mask of a villain in a Scooby-Doo cartoon, but that likely doesn’t pertain to Mike McCarthy and Will McClay.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero is reporting that the NFLPA has reversed course and has nixed the ability of teams to elevate an emergency third QB from their practice squad an unlimited amount of times during the regular season, a new wrinkle that was to be added for this season.

Important note as teams construct their initial 53-man rosters: NFL teams were informed that the NFLPA vetoed the revised Emergency 3rd Quarterback rule that would have allowed teams to elevate a bona fide QB from the practice squad an unlimited number of times. So, the rule reverted to the 2023 version, which says the emergency third QB must be on the 53-man roster, not an elevation.

Teams will have to use one of each players three allowed elevations for the season and then the QB must join the main roster. Dallas is unique here as the Cowboys have an interesting dynamic at quarterback behind starter Dak Prescott.

The club has a steady, capable presence in long-time Prescott support man Cooper Rush, who has been proven capable of winning games in Prescott’s absence. They also have a young, unproven guy in Trey Lance they hope could be a future star but currently isn’t ready to take on a more serious role.

Spots on the 53-man roster are precious commodities, and it doesn’t behoove a team to keep three quarterbacks on the depth chart if they don’t have to, especially to start a season. A few years ago, Dallas released Rush during final cuts and rolled into the regular season with only Prescott on the roster. Rush and the team had an agreement; as a vested veteran he wasn’t subject to a waiver claim and agreed to rejoin the Cowboys practice squad.

There, he was elevated each of the first three weeks of the season as teams are allowed to do twice a week with a maximum of three elevations per player.

Because of Lance’s guaranteed bonus money ($4.25 million) and upside, he’s going to make the Cowboys’ 53-man roster. But that doesn’t mean that he’s necessarily the best option to back up Prescott, at least not right now.

So it’s very feasible the Cowboys release Rush, get the extra room on their 53-man roster to keep another player they are concerned wouldn’t make it to the practice squad. Rush goes on the squad, but he’s elevated for the first three weeks of the season and is Prescott’s backup.

Lance could be the emergency third QB, but inactive on game days, but because the Cowboys are going to have him on the main roster regardless, they can operate separate from this rule.

Jerry Jones on Cowboys’ Trey Lance: ‘We’re planning on him being on our roster’

From @ToddBrock24f7: The Cowboys braintrust is focusing on Lance’s improvement and positives rather than the 5 interceptions he tossed in the preseason finale.

The reviews on Cowboys quarterback Trey Lance were somewhat mixed after Saturday’s preseason finale, a game that saw the former third-overall draft pick post a 320-plus-yard performance but also toss five interceptions in a 26-19 loss.

For context, throwing picks in five games is something that’s happened in just seven regular-season tilts in franchise history… and two of those times were by Eddie LeBaron, in 1960 and 1961, the club’s first two seasons of existence.

But despite maddening inconsistency, Lance doesn’t appear to have endangered his spot in the Cowboys locker room, with major cuts coming on Tuesday.

“Certainly, we’re planning on him being on our roster, for sure,” Jones told a gaggle of reporters after Saturday’s game.

“I saw good, and I saw some things that you’d like to have back,” Jones admitted. “I hate those five interceptions are going to be a stat on a game that I couldn’t have asked for more reps and a better situation to watch him play. And he needed that, because the one thing he’s missing more than anything is the lack of reps.”

True enough. Lance has had more passing attempts during this preseason as a Cowboy (113) than he had during his entire regular-season tenure with the 49ers (102). He’s been around for three years now, so it’s easy to forget how young Lance still is. Consider this: he’s actually younger- by just one day- than Falcons rookie Michael Penix Jr.

So he’s still very green, something head coach Mike McCarthy readily acknowledges and factors into any interception talk.

“I wish we had three more preseason games just to get him out there, just to keep playing, because he had tremendous production,” McCarthy said in his postgame press conference. “But yes, the turnovers are always the first thing we talk about and coach and go through.”

Granted, that part of the conversation will take longer than normal after this outing, but Lance also showed some real positives on Saturday. McCarthy pointed to his final throw to the goal line as time expired. It was picked off, but, if you squint, there was a silver lining to be taken from it.

“That last opportunity, he definitely was where he needed to be,” McCarthy observed. “He had a chance to hit that last touchdown. There’s always been four or five plays each game that he’ll learn from, but he continually gets better every time you give him a chance. I think that says a lot about him. I think he’s just a young guy that needs to play.”

Whether it should continue to be in a Cowboys uniform will be the subject of much debate over the coming days, weeks, and- depending on how starter Dak Prescott’s contract negotiations go- months.

Lance has flashed during his preseason run: mostly with his legs, but also with the occasional laser shot that makes it very hard to completely write him off as non-NFL material.

If Jones is to be taken at his word, there have been enough of those to warrant the Cowboys continuing their experiment with the North Dakota State product. Whether it will be as Prescott’s primary backup or the team’s emergency third-stringer remains to be seen.

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Jones knows Lance is in a better spot than he was a year ago at this time, when the Cowboys traded to get him. Further, he believes the young man has taken several huge steps in his progression just over the preseason.

“I think the main thing is the improvement from over the last six weeks. That’s impressive, very impressive,” Jones said. “What you’re looking for is: the arrow going up? And it’s going up, dramatically, really. Every practice and every game,” Jones explained. “A lot of things he wasn’t doing as well early that he’s doing well now.”

Not well enough to quiet all the doubters, to be sure. But apparently well enough to convince Jones he has something worth hanging onto, for at least the time being.

Still, the owner was asked Saturday if he had any regrets about making the trade that brought Lance- and the controversy he continues to ignite- to Dallas.

“For a fourth-round pick?” Jones asked with a grin. “Are you kidding me?”

He’s already got a fourth-round passer who plays like a first-rounder. So maybe, to Jones, it all evens out.

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NFL Preseason Finale: Late Pick-6 dooms Cowboys, Trey Lance in 26-19 defeat to Chargers

The Cowboys’ preseason came to an end with some last-minute drama, but still a defeat. | From @KDDrummondNFL

The exhibition season is over for the Dallas Cowboys. Following 31 days in Oxnard, CA, the club returned to the friendly confines of Texas this weekend with their first official piece of business the preseason finale. Hosting the Los Angeles Chargers, Dallas got their third strong look at young QB Trey Lance to gauge the progress he has made since his acquisition this week last year.

Lance had several strong moments as he started to again test his downfield accuracy, but he also had several throws that showed his on-field immaturity. Near the end of the fourth quarter, down one point on a drive that started on their own eight-yard line, Lance threw a bad interception where Tre’Mon Morris tipped it to himself and raced 25-yards for the score.

It was the third and final big play in a game where other than that Dallas dominated, leaving them some positive points but in 26-19 defeat.

Dallas ends their preseason 1-2 and now turns their attention to their Week 1 date, September 8, against the Cleveland Browns.

Lance was trying to make a great final impression and finished the game throwing for 323 yards but five interceptions, including a final throw into the end zone after getting Dallas down to the Chargers’ 20-yard line with seven seconds left.

There were several plays where his ceiling is evident and a handful of others where his floor was saddening. He had two final drives, somehow, after the Pick-6 to still shoot for a tie or a win, but both ended in interceptions, although No. 4 was WR Cam Johnson getting bullied out of a catch by the defender.

Lance had some top moments though, most notably finding rookie sixth rounder Ryan Flournoy on a beautiful drop-in pass for a score, and then also a 46-yard run around the left side for his own score.

That was one of several rushing plays where the Cowboys showed their dominance, gaining 246 yards on the ground as Deuce Vaughn, Malik Davis and Snoop Connor all averaged 5.5 yards per carry or more. Royce Freeman and Nathaniel Peat were both over 4.4 yards a carry themselves as the down-roster decision the coaching staff must make on RB4 got more data points to consider.

On defense, several players made stabs at landing on the end of the roster or the practice squad, including DEs Tyrus Wheat and Al-Quadin Muhammad recording sacks and LB Darius Harris making numerous impact plays.

UDFA rookie safety got his second interception of the preseason and also forced a fumble as the Chargers’ offense was severely limited outside of two big-play touchdowns.

Former Cowboys WR Simi Fehoko burned hopeful CB Andrew Booth for a 78-yard reception and WR Derius Davis took a jet sweep 70 yards when DE Viliami Fehoko bit inside and left the edge unsecured.

Now the coaches will huddle and make decisions to trim the roster down from 90 to 53 over the next four days before resuming practice and readying for the regular season.

Can Trey Lance trade inform when Brandon Aiyuk, Trent Williams contract talks end?

The Trey Lance trade provides a good blueprint for when the Brandon Aiyuk and Trent Williams contract situations can be resolved.

The San Francisco 49ers are familiar with looming unsettled offseason moves this late in the preseason.

Last year as the final preseason game approached, the 49ers had defensive end Nick Bosa’s contract still unfinished and a mess to clean up in their quarterback room as the battle for the backup job waged between Trey Lance and Sam Darnold.

This year it’s wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk’s hold-in and left tackle Trent Williams’ holdout that still need to be resolved.

Bosa’s holdout went beyond the preseason. He didn’t return to the field until practice began the Wednesday before Week 1 of the regular season. Perhaps that’ll be the case for one of either Williams or Aiyuk.

However, the 49ers may not want to let anything linger that long again. They don’t have the wiggle room to have two of their top offensive players behind the curve when they take the field Week 1 against the New York Jets. It’s hard to imagine both Aiyuk and Williams playing at a high level with only three days of practice under their belts.

Instead, we’ll look at the Lance situation which ended with the QB getting traded to the Dallas Cowboys on August 25 — the same day of their preseason finale against the Los Angeles Chargers. Getting that in before final cuts helped the 49ers’ decision-making when it came to whittling down their roster. There’s no such choice with Aiyuk and Williams, but their presence would change the calculus on how the rest of their position groups get filled out.

This year the 49ers wrap up their preseason slate against the Las Vegas Raiders on Friday, Aug. 23. That may be, and perhaps should be, when the Aiyuk and Williams situations ultimately get resolved.

A nice Friday news dump just ahead of their preseason finale would help offset some of the bad vibes lingering by the prolonged contract talks of the two All-Pros. That would also give Aiyuk and Williams nearly two weeks to ramp up with bonus practices in the week before the regular season, and then a full week of regular-season practices before getting suited up for the opener on Sept. 9.

That still may not be enough time to get both players playing at the highest level after missing all of the offseason program and training camp, but it should give them enough of a foundation to at least be serviceable when the regular-season begins.

Training camp was the original soft deadline and nothing happened then. Now we’re going to circle the final preseason game as another soft deadline since final cuts take place a few days later on Aug. 27. If there’s no resolution by then, things really step into the realm of outcomes where the Williams and Aiyuk contract talks could have a real impact on the regular season.

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Here’s how Cowboys should handle QB position on the 53-man roster

Dallas should maneuver their QBs around to best take advantage of roster rules and give them more time to evaluate Trey Lance. | From @KDDrummondNFL

Not a lot of stock is put into preseason performance when it comes to players who are expected to be big cogs in the pursuit of a championship. Despite the malaise that’s surrounded the Cowboys organization over the last seven months, the Super Bowl is still the goal in Dallas. So when it comes to exhibition games, the results and in most cases the individual performances don’t go a long way to determining much of anything.

That isn’t the case this year, where the pecking order at quarterback for now and in the future is being determined. The Cowboys have a unique situation where the entrenched and well-paid starter, his annual non-threatening backup and a young, highly pedigreed flyer are all in the final year of their contracts. While Dak Prescott’s place is secured, Cooper Rush and Trey Lance have an entirely different dynamic happening in their quest for the 53-man roster.

Which player should be Prescott’s backup is an interesting question that is playing out across the preseason games. With Prescott scheduled to make around $60 million annually on his next contract, the Cowboys would certainly love to be able to see if Lance could be a cheaper alternative this offseason.

With so little experience at the collegiate level and even less in the pros, the only way to evaluate that worthiness is to get as much in-game evidence as possible. That means, however, that the table is skewed in Lance’s favor when it comes to preseason snaps to evaluate.

Through two games, Lance has outsnapped Rush 116 to 15. At this point, through seven seasons, the book is in on who Rush is. His pecking order in the depth chart, and on the 53-man roster is really going to be determined by how the staff feels Lance has performed.

After a rocky start in Week 1, Lance turned in a much better Week 2 and showed there could be something there as he orchestrated two touchdown drives. So how should the Cowboys handle the depth chart when they begin roster cutdowns over the next 10 days?

The Cowboys should pull off a combination of what they’ve done the last several seasons with their initial 53-man roster.

Rush shouldn’t be on it. Instead, they need to do a gentleman’s agreement like they did in 2022 and release him. Rush isn’t subject to waivers, so he can re-sign with the Cowboys’ practice squad without any risk of another team claiming him.

Make Trey Lance the backup on the 53, but he doesn’t necessarily need to be active on game day. He can be the emergency third quarterback and Dallas can use the three game-day elevations to make Rush the backup, allowing more developmental time for Lance.

Even an extra three weeks of leeway could be crucial in his development. This buys the Cowboys an extra three weeks of a roster spot, which based on what everyone knows about the NFL, will see someone have to be moved to IR and open up space.