Cowboys' Trey Lance: Emergency quarterback for Week 1
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Lance (coach's decision) is inactive Sunday against the Browns, but he will suit up as the team's emergency quarterback.
Cooper Rush will be the Cowboys' backup quarterback behind Dak Prescott. Lance will only be able to enter the game if both Prescott and Rush were to sustain injuries.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Could play entire game Saturday
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Lance might play the entirety of Saturday's preseason finale against the Chargers, Nick Harris of DallasCowboys.com report s.
Owner/GM Jerry Jones has stated outright that Lance is locked into a spot on the 53-man roster, but the coaching staff is still trying to figure out what to do with him. The 24-year-old quarterback has had a solid preseason statistically, completing 40 of 64 passes for 339 yards and a touchdown while adding 78 rushing yards and another TD on 13 carries, but his decision-making and ability to read defenses remains erratic. Dak Prescott is the unquestioned starter for Dallas, but Lance could still be in consideration for the No. 2 spot over Cooper Rush depending on his performance Saturday.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Guaranteed roster spot
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Cowboys owner Jerry jones said Tuesday that Lance will have a spot on the 53-man roster, Saad Yousuf of The Athletic reports.
Jones' comments aren't a big surprise with NFL teams now allowed to more easily carry three quarterbacks, but Lance is still in the running to take the No. 2 job from Cooper Rush and emerge as Dak Prescott's primary backup this season. Lance's mobility and athleticism have been on display this preseason, but he's only attempted 102 passes since being selected third overall in the 2021 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Lance's ability to read defenses and manage game situations remains a work in progress.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Mixed bag in preseason debut
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Lance completed 25 of 41 passes for 188 yards in Sunday's 13-12 preseason loss to the Rams. He added 44 rushing yards on six carries.
Cooper Rush got the start for Dallas in the team's preseason opener but saw only one series before handing the reins to Lance, who played the rest of the game. The 24-year-old quarterback flashed the physical ability that made him the third overall pick in the 2021 Draft, escaping pressure with his legs and showing off his arm strength, and his numbers were impacted by some drops by the second-team receiving options he was working with. Lance also had some accuracy issues of his own, though, and he failed to get the ball into the end zone despite multiple trips inside the 20, forcing the Cowboys to settle for four Brandon Aubrey field goals. This performance likely wasn't enough to push the former 49er ahead of Rush in the battle to be the primary backup to Dak Prescott, but Lance should get another chance in Saturday's preseason clash with the Raiders.
The Cowboys declined Lance's fifth-year option for the 2025 season Wednesday, Todd Archer of ESPN.com reports.
Dallas' decision comes as little surprise, as the No. 3 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft appeared in just eight games over his first two seasons in the league with the 49ers and then didn't play a single snap for Dallas in 2023 after being acquired prior to Week 1. Lance remains on Dallas' roster for the upcoming season and will compete with Cooper Rush for backup duties behind starting quarterback Dak Prescott.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Sticking with Cowboys in 2024
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The Cowboys will pick up Lance's $4.25 million roster bonus for the 2024 season, Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News reports.
Lance didn't play a snap for the Cowboys in 2023 after he was traded by the 49ers late in training camp. However, Dallas is optimistic about the growth he made and reportedly has not considered cutting him. Unsurprisingly, the team will not pick up Lance's fifth-year option, which would have been worth $22.4 million. In the best-case scenario, he'll be the Cowboys' backup quarterback entering 2024.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Doesn't play a snap in 2023
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Lance didn't see the field for a single snap in 2023 while serving as the Cowboys' No. 3 quarterback.
Acquired from the 49ers in August, Lance spent the entire season as the emergency third QB as Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush both stayed healthy for the entire year. Lance still possesses the upside that made him the third overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, but he attempted only 102 passes in two seasons with San Francisco due to injuries, and there's no way to know how much the lack of action has caused his development to stagnate. The 23-year-old will likely head into 2024 competing for the No. 2 role with Rush.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Emergency QB versus Miami
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Lance (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Dolphins but will serve as the emergency quarterback, Todd Archer of ESPN.com reports.
Lance will continue to serve as the emergency quarterback and will see the field in the event that both Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush sustain injuries.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Will be emergency option
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Lance (coach's decision) is inactive Sunday against the Bills, according to Todd Archer of ESPN.com, but he'll still dress as the emergency quarterback.
Lance will once again operate as the team's No. 3 quarterback. Despite being inactive, he'll still technically suit up, but he'll only be allowed to enter the game if Dak Prescott or Cooper Rush get hurt.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Emergency QB against Philadelphia
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Lance (coach's decision) is inactive Sunday against the Eagles but will serve as the emergency quarterback.
Lance will once again be the QB3 for Week 14, as he has done all season. He will be eligible to enter the game should both Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush sustain in-game injuries.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Emergency QB again
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Lance (coach's decision) is again listed as inactive for Monday's game against the Chargers, but he is also designated as the Cowboys' emergency quarterback, Michael Gehlken of The Dallas Morning News reports.
Lance will continue doing what he has for every other contest this season and serve as Dallas' emergency option under center should both Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush get forced out due to injury. He has not been called upon yet this season.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Once again emergency QB
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Lance (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against San Francisco, but he was also designated as the Cowboys' emergency quarterback, Michael Gehlken of The Dallas Morning News reports.
Lance will serve as Dallas' emergency quarterback for the fifth game in a row. Therefore, he will only be allowed to see the field if both starting quarterback Dak Prescott and backup Cooper Rush are both forced out with injuries Sunday.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Reprising emergency QB role
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Lance (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Patriots but is designated as the Cowboys' emergency quarterback, Todd Archer of the Dallas Morning News reports.
Lance has filled the emergency QB role in each of the Cowboys' first four games of the season. The third-year pro will only see action against New England if both Dak Prescott and backup Cooper Rush are forced to exit the game due to injury.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: Inactive, but available as third QB
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Lance (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Jets, but he'll suit up and serve as the Cowboys' emergency third quarterback, Michael Gehlken of The Dallas Morning News reports.
As he was Week 1 at the Giants, Lance will be on hand in the event both Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush need to be removed from Week 2 action. Such a fate may be Lance's reality moving forward as he continues to grow accustomed to the Cowboys offense.
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Cowboys' Trey Lance: On move to Dallas
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The 49ers agreed to trade Lance to the Cowboys for a fourth-round draft pick Friday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
After Sam Darnold was named the 49ers' backup quarterback to starter Brock Purdy on Wednesday, Lance was absent from that day's practice. On Thursday, coach Kyle Shanahan relayed to Nick wagoner of ESPN.com that Lance would "most likely" remain in San Francisco, but just one day later, he's now on the move to Dallas. The Cowboys have a more established No. 1 QB in Dak Prescott, but Lance at least will get to continue his development under coach Mike McCarthy and perhaps compete with Cooper Rush to be the Cowboys' second signal-caller this season.
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49ers' Trey Lance: Drops to No. 3 on depth chart
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Lance has fallen to third on San Francisco's depth chart with Sam Darnold having won the team's backup quarterback competition, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
Lance, the No. 3 overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, has flashed throughout training camp but ultimately turned in mixed preseason results. Darnold, who arrived in free agency, has consistently shown more aptitude in head coach Kyle Shanahan's offensive system in practices, while the 49ers have remained consistent in viewing Brock Purdy as their Week 1 starter. San Francisco may still intend to keep Lance on the roster and continue his development, though Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports that the team could now explore the possibility of a trade.
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49ers' Trey Lance: Mixed results Saturday
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Lance completed 12 of 18 pass attempts for 173 yards, a touchdown and an interception in Saturday's preseason win over the Broncos. He wound up losing two yards on his four rushing attempts.
Lance was the third quarterback to enter the contest following the return of starter Brock Purdy (elbow), who ran the opening drive before giving way to Sam Darnold. This was a planned move by head coach Kyle Shanahan after Lance played the entire first half last week while Darnold was limited to the third quarter. The 2021 third overall pick got to flash his arm strength on a couple of big completions downfield while also leading the game-winning drive as time expired. It wasn't all roses for the 23-year-old though, as his interception came on an ill-advised pass into a crowd of defenders on a broken screen play. Neither Lance nor Darnold has pulled away in this backup competition heading into the team's third and final preseason game against the Chargers on Friday.
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49ers' Trey Lance: Benefits from lucky bounce
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Lance completed 10 of 15 pass attempts for 112 yards and a touchdown while rushing once for two yards in Sunday's 34-7 preseason loss to the Raiders.
Lance's stat line looks great in the box score, but he benefited from a couple of fortunate bounces while starting in place of Brock Purdy (elbow) on Sunday. The notable play happened in the red zone on the 49ers' fourth drive when Lance threw an ill-advised pass across his body that should have been intercepted in the end zone, but the defender bobbled it into the hands of a diving Ross Dwelley for a score. The second happened when the 2021 first-round pick simply threw the ball to a Raiders defender, who might have been so startled that he dropped it. Lance did have a couple nice moments to hang his hat on, but most of his playing time in the first half was spent under duress due to poor offensive line play. The 49ers will attempt to get its entire offense going in an upcoming exhibition against Denver on Saturday.
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49ers' Trey Lance: Looking good at offseason program
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Coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters Lance is completely healthy and probably "the best that we've (seen) him right now," NBC's Matt Maiocco reports. "When you watch [Lance's] feet, his timing, how he's throwing the ball, he's in such a better place now than he was last year at this time," Shanahan said Wednesday.
Shanahan still believes Lance can be "the man for a long time" but also said Brock Purdy (elbow) played at "an extremely high level" last season. GM John Lynch previously hinted at Purdy being the favorite to start once he's healthy, with Shanahan then noting Wednesday that he expects the second-year pro to be ready for training camp. Still, Lance just turned 23 in May and was the third overall pick only two years ago, so a strong showing at spring practices (for which Purdy will be sidelined) likely would be taken seriously. The same might be true, albeit to a lesser extent, for offseason addition Sam Darnold, who figures to get some first-team reps this spring after signing a one-year, $4.5 million contract that includes $3.5 million guaranteed. Another interesting note from Shanahan is that Lance's rookie-year finger injury impacted his throwing motion in Year 2 but shouldn't be a factor at this point after a fibula fracture in Week 2 last season afforded the young QB a long layoff from football. Shanahan and Lynch said in late April that Lance had completed his rehab from surgery and was 100 percent healthy.
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49ers' Trey Lance: To split first-team reps sans Purdy
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Coach Kyle Shanahan said Tuesday he expects Lance (ankle) to split first-team reps with Sam Darnold during early offseason workouts as Brock Purdy (elbow) recovers from surgery, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.comg reports.
Lance is expected to be 100 percent for the start of OTAs, but Shanahan noted that it's still possible he has to be eased into action, which wouldn't be the case for Darnold. It appears that the 49ers are heading for a legitimate quarterback competition this offseason, though GM John Lynch said Monday that Purdy is "probably the leader in the clubhouse" to start once he's healthy, per Matt Barrows of The Athletic. As Purdy's recovery timetable remains cloudy, Lance and/or Darnold could make the most of their upcoming opportunities and win over San Francisco's coaching staff. By virtue of his unique rushing abilities, Lance could potentially be the most interesting fantasy option of the trio if he were to get another chance to start.
