A year after acquiring him via trade, the Dallas Cowboys have decided to retain Trey Lance for at least one more season, according to The Dallas Morning News, with plans to exercise the quarterback's $4.25 million 2024 roster bonus, officially due this summer.
The move dictates that Lance will count $5.3 million against this year's salary cap, which is slightly above the scheduled cost of other notable quarterbacks, including Pittsburgh Steelers starter Kenny Pickett and Carolina Panthers No. 2 Andy Dalton.
It's an unsurprising but notable decision considering the 23-year-old Lance didn't take a single snap after joining the Cowboys last August, spending all of 2023 as the third-stringer behind Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush. Dallas could still attempt to trade Lance, who went No. 3 overall to the San Francisco 49ers in the 2021 draft, but team officials believe he made "tremendous strides" learning behind Prescott during his first year in Dallas, per the Morning News.
One thing the Cowboys won't do with Lance: exercise the former NDSU star's fifth-year option, which would cost a guaranteed $22.4 million in 2025. That means, even if he stays put this year, he'll be on track to hit free agency following the season.
Lance was drafted by the 49ers with the expectation of replacing former starter Jimmy Garoppolo as the team's long-term quarterback. After appearing in just six games as a rookie, however, his 2022 campaign was quickly cut short by an ankle injury, paving the way for rookie backup Brock Purdy to eventually take over. After Purdy's improbably successful debut, which preceded 2023's Super Bowl appearance, Lance was shipped to the Cowboys for a fourth-round pick just ahead of his third NFL season.
