Every NFL team uses preseason games to evaluate key position battles every year, and there is no position more important than the quarterback (obviously).
The Dallas Cowboys have an entrenched starter, of course, in Dak Prescott, but whom his backup will be in 2024 is up in the air. The battle is between Cooper Rush, an undrafted 30-year-old passer out of Central Michigan who has been in the NFL since 2017, is squaring off against Trey Lance, the 2021 NFL Draft's third overall pick by the San Francisco 49ers who was acquired by Dallas for a fourth-round pick last year.
Entering the team's final preseason game, and their only one at home, against the Los Angeles Chargers, the Cowboys' backup quarterback job is still up for grabs, according to Dallas head coach Mike McCarthy.
"I think just like anything, you play this all the way out," McCarthy said Wednesday about his backup quarterback battle. "You can never have enough good quarterbacks, and we got three good ones. We're fortunate."
Rush is the safe pick given that he's a tenured Cowboys veteran and a player who has seen Dallas win five of his six NFL starts when filling in for Prescott in 2021 and 2022 because of an injury. His training camp reps and preseason game reps have been fewer in 2024 than they have been in recent years because of the need to see what the squad has in Lance. Rush has completed 3 of his 6 passes for 50 yards this preseason.
"Cooper is the same man every single day," McCarthy said. "He is super consistent. He is on top of his game. I think if you look at his snaps that he has had this year, definitely quality over quantity. That's by design with what we've got going on with Dak and Trey. This is clearly, in my time with him, his best camp. His decision-making has been on point. I think his footwork and some of the things he's done have been impressive. There are not too many two-minute drills when he goes out there that Cooper doesn't take the offense right down the field. Super consistent. I really like the camp Cooper has had."
Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones concurred with his head coach's assessment of Rush.
"Cooper Rush is someone that I am real impressed with out here, too," Jones said Tuesday. "He's had a great camp."
Lance, who has superior athletic tools in comparison Rush and is years younger (age 24), is someone who the Cowboys would like to see receive more reps in order to truly evaluate him. He's the upside pick. They acquired him in a trade from the 49ers the day before their 2023 preseason home finale against the Las Vegas Raiders, so this is their first full offseason with the young passer. With Lance waiting behind Jimmy Garoppolo in San Francisco and then suffering an injury in his fourth career start -- Week 2 of the 2022 season -- he hasn't had a full opportunity to show what he can be. That's why McCarthy declared earlier this offseason that Lance would be "a large part of the preseason." He looked a lot more comfortable in Dallas' preseason victory over the Raiders on Saturday, throwing his first touchdown of the exhibition season on a fade route to rookie receiver Ryan Flournoy.
"I saw obvious improvement," Jones said Tuesday when asked about Lance's preseason outing at the Raiders. "That's promising because he does have a lot of improvement to have, but he's got all the tools. He's got the mettle. You saw that mettle clicking in and adjustments that he hadn't made, let's say as early as the week before. That's pretty promising the way he played out there Saturday. ... The issue is after preseason, how does he get his reps without something negative happening with Dak or, in this particular case, Cooper Rush?"
Trey Lance this preseason
| Week 1 at Rams | Week 2 at Raiders | |
|---|---|---|
Completions/attempts | 25 of 41 | 15 of 23 |
Pass yards | 188 | 151 |
Pass yards/attempt | 4.6 | 6.6 |
TD-INT | 0-0 | 1-0 |
Passer rating | 72.0 | 98.3 |
Carries | 6 | 7 |
Rush yards | 44 | 34 |
| Rush TD | 0 | 1 |
There won't be any drama about quarterback roster cuts this preseason with the Cowboys keeping all three of Prescott, Rush and Lance for the 2024 regular season, but there will be plenty to keep an eye on in terms of Lance's performance Saturday against the Chargers as Dallas decides on its regular season quarterback hierarchy.
"I'd like to see us really be able to have our quarterbacking depth," Jones said. "Specifically talking about No. 19 (Lance). ... I'd like to see him get some more work in this weekend, that would be number one. Do I need to see any more from Trey Lance? The answer is yes, but he's going to be on the 53."